Tall Shipiao Yixing Zisha Teapot – Golden Duanni Clay, 120ml
Tall Shipiao Yixing Zisha Teapot – Golden Duanni Clay, 120ml
This is a 120 ml shipiao teapot in Golden Duanni Clay, hand-carved, made in Dingshu, Yixing. Its Chinese name is 高石瓢.
The clay. The duanni that fires brightest — a clear, luminous gold, with an unusually fine and even grain for the family. Deepens from yellow toward amber as it is used, so the colour of the pot and the colour of the liquor start to answer each other. Best on lighter teas where that can be seen.
The form. The Shipiao form (石瓢) dates to the Qing dynasty, Jiaqing–Daoguang era, attributed to Chen Mansheng and Yang Pengnian. Originally called shidiao, one of the eighteen Mansheng forms. The name carries a line from Su Dongpo and a Buddhist idea — of three thousand rivers, one drinks a single gourd. Triangular in profile, flat-bodied, standing on three small feet. Plain to the point of severity, and completely stable on the table. The form most often described as great skill appearing clumsy.
How it was made. Decoration cut into the leather-hard clay by hand with a steel blade, in the Yixing engraving tradition that goes back to Chen Mansheng's collaborations with potters.
Size and tea. 120 ml is the classic gongfu size — comfortable for one drinker or two sharing small cups, and the volume most Chaoshan-style brewing was built around. Best suited to green tea, raw pu-erh and light oolong.
One honest note on duanni-family clays: because the body is pale and very open, dark and heavily roasted teas can leave uneven marks if the pot is handled with oily hands or left wet. Rinse it, dry it, and keep it to lighter teas and it will come up beautifully.
This pot. Catalogue no. 372, 120 ml, US$450. Photographed individually — the images show the pot you receive.
Made by an independent Dingshu potter working outside the titled-master system. We do not attach a name we cannot verify.
| Clay | Golden Duanni Clay (黄金段) |
|---|---|
| Form | Shipiao (石瓢) |
| Capacity | 120 ml |
| Craft | Hand-carved (刻绘) |
| Origin | Dingshu, Yixing, Jiangsu, China |
| Catalogue no. | 372 |
New to zisha? Read how to season a Yixing teapot before first use.
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