A black pottery tea brazier, Tang dynasty 唐 黑陶茶爐及茶釜

Tea braziers were one of the key vessels in tea preparation in the Tang dynasty, when tea cakes were first ground into powder form and boiled in a brazier for consumption. The late Tang dynasty painting Gong Le Tu in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, depicts a classic scene of court ladies and musicians in a tea ceremony, where elaborate tea braziers were presented on the table. Tea braziers of similar form as the present lot can be found in various media, including a Yue celadon example from the Zhejiang Provincial Museum and a Gongxian kiln amber-glazed example at the China National Tea Museum in Hangzhou, Zhejiang (http://www.teamuseum.cn/news/holding-detail.htm?id=519).

茶爐茶釜為唐代煮茶必備用具之一。唐代流行「吃茶」文化，煮茶前先將茶餅壓成粉末，再放入茶釜中烹煮。台北故宮博物院藏晚唐時期的《宮樂圖》描繪了宮中仕女煎茶品茗，奏樂歡宴的情境。畫中可見眾仕女圍坐於長方茶桌前，當中仕女手拿長柄茶勺，將茶湯自茶釜分進各人茶盌內，可見茶釜為唐代煮茶重要茶具之一。浙江省博物館藏有一晚唐越窰青瓷例，浙江杭州中國茶葉博物館藏另有一鞏縣窰黃釉例，錄於其網站 http://www.teamuseum.cn/news/holding-detail.htm?id=519。