Tokoname pottery
Tokoname Pottery
Tokoname is one of Japan's six ancient kiln sites — the Rokkoyo — with a pottery tradition stretching back over a thousand years. Located in Aichi Prefecture, the town produced functional ceramics for everyday use throughout the medieval period, and its reputation for fine-grained, high-quality clay attracted potters from across Japan. Today, Tokoname is best known internationally for its kyusu teapots, which are considered the finest available for brewing Japanese green tea and which are collected and used by serious tea practitioners worldwide.
The distinctive quality of Tokoname pottery begins with the clay. The local red clay — shudei — has a fine particle structure and a high iron content that gives finished pieces their characteristic reddish-brown colour and their beneficial effect on tea. When water is heated in or poured through a Tokoname vessel, the iron from the clay leaches into the water in trace amounts, altering its mineral profile in a way that softens astringency and enhances the umami character of green tea. This is not superstition — it is a well-documented chemical reaction that experienced tea drinkers can identify in a blind tasting.
Tokoname kyusu teapots are made in the side-handle style characteristic of Japanese tea culture, with a ceramic mesh filter integrated into the body of the pot rather than added as a separate strainer. The mesh is fired into the clay during production and allows the tea to flow freely while retaining all of the leaves. The fit of the lid, the quality of the filter and the balance of the spout are all indicators of quality in a kyusu, and the pieces in this collection represent the upper tier of what Tokoname producers currently make.
Tokoname pottery also makes some of the finest gifts available in the store — significant objects with genuine provenance and a centuries-long tradition behind them.
Discover more in our subcategories:
Discover our green tea selection to pair with your Tokoname teapot, or explore the full tea ceremony collection.
Tokoname pottery: Japan's ancient kiln town and its famous kyusu teapots — history, clay properties and how to care for your kyusu.
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