Hatsuhana Katatsuki, front view (black and white)

The Special utensils (名物 ''

meibutsu is a term most often applied to regional specialties (also known as ). can also be applied to specialized areas of interest, such as , where it refers to famous tea utensils, or Japanese swords, where it refers to specific named famous blades. ...

'') are historic and precious Japanese tea utensils (茶道具). They consisted of important tea bowls, kettles, spoons, whisks, etc. The classification came not only from value of the tool itself but also by the possessor and the inheritance.

History

The Ashikaga ''shōgun'' accumulated a number of precious items into the treasury called Higashiyama Treasure (東山御物 ''Higashiyama gomotsu''), which also contained a number of tea items. After the fall of the shogunate, the treasury broke up and many of the items were dispersed or lost. Those that have survived today are designed National Treasures by the government. At the beginning of the Muromachi period, with the rise of the Japanese tea culture, the demand for tea was soaring, and an appreciation began to develop for locally-made items and wares. Until then the most appreciated items by the aristocracy were items from China that started with the Tang dynasty. A classic example is Jian ware, which later developed into ''tenmoku''. During the Warring States period, Chinese tea ware and items became a symbol of power for warlords. The warlord

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese '' daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period. He is regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. Nobunaga was head of the very powerful Oda clan, and launched a war against other ''daimyō'' to unif ...

and his successor the regent

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and '' daimyō'' ( feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the C ...

collected a number of important items, often from families he either defeated or were given to him as tribute. These added to his prestige and he would exhibit them to guests in his Golden Tea Room and at the Grand Kitano Tea Ceremony. Items that have survived are inscribed as Important Cultural Property. Amongst the ''meibutsu'' of the Warring States period are the: * ''Tsukumo Kaminasu'' (九十九髪茄子) * ''Hiragumo'' kettle * ''Tenka San Nasu'' (天下三肩衝) refers to the following three

eggplant Eggplant ( US, Canada), aubergine ( UK, Ireland) or brinjal (Indian subcontinent, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa) is a plant species in the nightshade family Solanaceae. ''Solanum melongena'' is grown worldwide for its edible fruit. Mo ...

-shaped tea caddies (茶入 ''chaire''): ''Hatsuhana'' (初花), ''Nitta'' (新田) and ''Narashiba'' (楢柴肩衝) * ''Shibata Ido chawan'' * The three tea jars (茶壺 ''chatsubo'') : ''Shōka'', ''Mikaduki'' and ''Matsushima'' * ''Ankoku-ji'' tea caddy * ''Akaraku Hayafune'' (赤楽早船) * ''Amidadou'' kettle (阿弥陀堂釜) * ''Uesugi hyōtan'' (上杉瓢箪 "Uesugi

gourd Gourds include the fruits of some flowering plant species in the family Cucurbitaceae, particularly '' Cucurbita'' and '' Lagenaria''. The term refers to a number of species and subspecies, many with hard shells, and some without. One of the e ...

"), also known previously as the ''Ōtomo hyōtan'' (Ōtomo gourd) * ''Chidori no kōro'' (千鳥香爐) incense burner, made out of

celadon ''Celadon'' () is a term for pottery denoting both wares glazed in the jade green celadon color, also known as greenware or "green ware" (the term specialists now tend to use), and a type of transparent glaze, often with small cracks, that wa ...

and black lacquer lid with a small handle in the shape of a

plover Plovers ( , ) are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. Description There are about 66 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or " dotterel". The closely related lapwing su ...

(千鳥 ''chidori'')

In popular culture

'' Hyouge Mono'' (へうげもの Hepburn: Hyōge Mono, lit. "Jocular Fellow") is a Japanese ''

manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is use ...

'' written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Yamada. It was adapted into an ''

anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

'' series in 2011, and includes the ''meibutsu'' utensils throughout its story.

References

{{Reflist Japanese tea utensils

History

In popular culture

See also

References