An exceptional heirloom Jian 'nogime tenmoku' tea bowl, Southern Song dynasty and a cinnabar lacquer 'guri' bowl stand, Yuan dynasty | 南宋 建窰兔毫禾目天目茶盞 及 元 朱面剔犀如意雲紋盞托

Passed down in Japan since medieval times, and thereafter in the collection of the Daikomyo-ji temple.

自中世紀於日本傳世，後入藏於京都大光明寺

The appreciation and connoisseurship of black-glazed tea bowls from Fujian is inextricably linked with, and arguably attributed to, the homage paid to these ceramics by Japanese collectors and tea masters since the travelling Buddhist monks began bringing them back to Japan from China in the 12th - 13th centuries, and the almost universal referral of Jian black-glazed tea bowls as tenmoku is a lasting testimony of this reverence.

The current bowl, superbly covered with a viscous black glaze marked with the most mesmerising striations, would have ranked among the rarest and most celebrated tea bowls since it left the kilns in the Southern Song dynasty. Passed down in Japan over the centuries, the black glaze, with its original lustre preserved, falls neatly over the well-proportioned bowl and stops neatly above the foot to showcase the dark grey body of the vessel.

The seemingly humble appearance of Jian bowls made them particularly appropriate and popular for use in Zen Buddhist temples, where Buddhist priests prepared, imbibed, and served tea for its beneficial effects on the body and mind. The elaborate preparatory process – which involved scraping tea from a pressed cake, drying it, grinding it, putting it through a sieve, selecting the finest resulting powder, mixing it into a paste with warm water, and gradually adding additional water while simultaneously whisking it into a frothy beverage – played a central role in religious ceremonies. It also became fashionable in elite social circles. Sacred and secular enthusiasts alike sought to master the art of tea-making, with praise awarded to the person who achieved the richest froth.

A related bowl of similar proportions (d. 12.6 cm), also covered in a dark glaze marked with very fine striations, though with a stronger russet tinge around the inner and outer rims, is preserved in the National Kyoto Museum, museum no. GK221.

建窰黑釉茶盌之賞鑑，與日本茶道宗師與收藏家息息相關。鐮倉時代，宋代建窰茶盞隨禪宗東渡，人盡奉之，以為致珍，其日文名稱「天目」也隨之流傳千里，成為現今通稱此類黑釉器盞之名。

此類茶盞，不規則兔毫細紋自然分佈，纖俊秀逸，胎體勻稱扎實，潤亮黑釉掛於其上，保茶汁溫熱而不燙手；外壁釉不及底，可見胎土。經數百年而不衰，所謂鳳毛麟角，可見一斑。

建窰兔毫，謙素而內斂，多藏於佛寺，用之奉茶以養身心。人們先從茶餅刮下茶葉，置於盤上以微火烘烤，使其乾燥易於研磨，成粉狀後過篩，確保茶粉細幼順滑。盌內加入少量茶粉，混合溫水調成糊狀，逐漸加水攪拌，攪出泡沫即可飲用。製作過程費心費時，亦乃宗教儀式核心之所在。鬥茶於權貴間風靡一時，不論出世入世，好茶者均勵力致學，打出湯花最多且久聚不散者，即為優勝。

類似一例（徑12.6公分），盌身同樣被黑釉覆蓋，兔毫條達，惟盌內外口沿所泛褐更爲明顯，收於京都國立博物館，館藏編號GK221。