YAMACHAWAN（MOUNTAIN TEA BOWL）, Ko-Tokoname / Kiln Accretion, Kamakura Period（1185–1333CE）

A Kamakura-period Ko-Tokoname mountain tea bowl characterized by kiln accretion.

On the low, open mountain tea bowl, lumps of clay and fragments formed during firing have fused to the surface and remain as a large accretion. While retaining the vessel’s outline, the collapses and fusions that occurred in the kiln rise up directly from the form, giving this antique ceramic an object-like presence akin to a natural stone.

This mountain tea bowl has a gray-brown clay body covered by a gentle natural glaze, and from the rim down to the body it conveys the rustic strength characteristic of Ko-Tokoname ware of the Kamakura period. On the upper area, layers of bluish ash glaze, blackened clay, and whitish encrustations overlap, strongly evoking the high temperatures and prolonged time within the kiln during firing.

The kiln accretion is not merely an attachment but remains as if rising from the vessel’s interior; from different angles it can read as a mountain landscape, a mass of rock, or a fragment of decayed architecture. As a utilitarian Ko-Tokoname vessel that, by chance within the kiln, was transformed into a single sculptural form, it is particularly noteworthy.

There is a large chip to the rim, and across the surface one can see firing-related collapse, areas of fusion, and gritty accretions. These features are not so much later damage as integral aspects of the work’s formation and visual character. It is not intended for use as a tea bowl; it is best displayed on a shelf or on the floor and appreciated as an object of antique pottery.