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Kiln sites dating to the second half of the fifth century are found on the lower slopes of
Mount Asahi, and the sites are littered with fragments of unglazed gray pottery known as
Sue ware. The area between the Asahi Pottery and the temple called Enshin'in - known
as "Tea Bowl Mountain" - has a particularly long association with pottery production.
The Asahi pottery occupies a proud location along the Uji River across from the famous
temple Byodoin. Tradition holds that the pottery began operating during the Keicho era
(1596-1615). The founder received guidance from a noted tea master named Kobori
Enshu (1579-1647) and was given a seal bearing the two Chinese characters for "Asahi".
Asahi came to be numbered among the seven kilns said to have been Enshu's favorites.
The second master, Tosaku, received a seal carved with distinctive characters written by
Enshu's third son, Gonjuro. At that time it was still rare for potters to mark their wares
with identifying seals. Loocated in Uji, famed for its tea plantations, and not far from
Kyoto, the Asahi Pottery under the direction of the third generation master, also called
Tosaku, developed a following among tea devotees of the warrior, noble, and literati
classes.
In the difficult financial climate of the eighteenth century, however, the Asahi pottery
encountered difficult times, and the fifth, sixth, and seventh generation masters, all of
whom used the proffessional name Chobei, augmented their living as potters by
cultivating tea. The fortunes of the pottery began to revive when the eighth generation
master, Chobei, who headed the workshop from the 1830s through 1850s, was
commissioned to supply ceramics to the imperial palace in Kyoto, and also received the
patronage of the noble Niwata house.The ninth generation master, also Chobei, carried
those efforts forward, and he is credited with returning the Asahi pottery to a vigor
echoing that of the early years.
Since then five more generations have passed this family business on from father to son.
In March, 1995, the fourteenth generation master, Hosai, retired and took a new name,
Yukoan, while his son succeeded to the name Hosai as the fifteenth head of the pottery.
His goal is to carry the pottery's techniques and traditions forward into a new age.
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Multi-colored porcelain sets for steeped tea
The eight generation master, Chobei,first developed sets of porcelain vessels for
preparing steeped tea in 1853. In contrast to the transformation in the clay color
represented by kase or hanshi, the color changes on these vessels are rung by different
colored glazes. The copper-red glaze is particularly volatile, and perfect examples are
extremely rare. Several generations worked to prefect the handleless teapot's
beautiful form and dripless spout, creating a vessel that has long been prized for its
ease of use.
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