A Shodai-yaki plate from early in the production of that ware, some several hundred years old now.It comes with a label and old monochrome photograph of the piece both stamped with the Kumamoto Museum (Hakubutsugkan) stamp.The plate is a kiln flaw, with a split in the rim in two places which ocured during the firing process, The plate is 27 cm (10-3/4 inches) diameter and is in overall fine condition, enclosed in a red ^-lacquered old Edo period wooden box.
Shodai ware is a type of pottery begun approximately 400 years ago in Kumamoto Prefecture named after the kilns that were built at the foot of Mount Shodai, and it is considered one of the region's representative ceramics.
Technically and stylistically, Shodai ware draws influence from the Korean Peninsula, featuring a rustic and robust style created using clay rich in iron. Legend states the craft began when the Hosokawa family took control of Higo Province they brought Mekoji Genshichi and Katsuragi Hachizaemon, from Buzen and Agano ware to establish kilns at the foot of Mount Shodai. Around the same time, Takada ware was also created by others, who relocated from Buzen and Agano to Yatsushiro. The use of straw ash glaze as the fundamental glaze has remained largely unchanged to the present day. In the Edo period, most Shodai ware, with few exceptions, was consumed within the Higo domain and did not spread to other regions. The remains of the kiln sites used during that time, such as the Bin'yaki Kiln and the Segami Kiln, can still be seen in Nankan Town today.Currently, there are 11 kiln families in Kumamoto Prefecture.
