An ancient tenmoku bowl from China long treasured in Japan dating from the 13th to 15th century.It is 12.3 cm (5 inches) diameter, 7 cm (just less than 3 inches) tall in a beautiful imported cloth pouch enclosed in an old Kiri-wood box.
Chinese tenmoku tea bowls (known as tenmoku chawan in Japanese) hold a significant place in classical Japanese tea culture. Originally imported from Chinese monasteries during the Song dynasty (960–1279), these bowls were admired for their simple, refined forms and dynamic glazes, often featuring streaks, speckles, or mirror-black finishes. Their dark, lustrous surfaces enhanced the visual contrast with bright green matcha, creating a striking visual harmony. These bowls influenced the evolution of Japanese tea ceramics, inspiring new glazes and forms and were valued highly throughout the Sengoku period of warring states.
