The Early Porcelain Kilns of Japan: Arita in the First Half of the Seventeenth Century (Oxford Oriental Monographs ; New Series)

This is the first book in a European language to document the porcelain made in Japan in the first half of the seventeenth century, from the beginnings of the industry there until the time an export trade to Europe and the Near East developed. This porcelain was made for a domestic market and so is little known in the West. The author also presents the most comprehensive reconstruction made so far of the working practices of Japanese potters in the seventeenth century; assesses the individual kilns of Arita, where the porcelain was made; and looks at modern workshop methods in order to throw light on possible conditions in the seventeenth-century. The book includes a large number of colour plates of fine examples of the porcelain, many photographed for the first time, as well as kiln-damaged pieces retrieved from kiln sites. These show which kilns were working, when they were in production, and which type of porcelain within the genre they produced. The evidence of kiln-sherds also demonstrates that the problematic porcelain of Old Kutani is nearly all of Arita manufacture. The Early Porcelain Kilns of Japan 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 6 Japan 6 Europe and America 6 PREFACE 7 CONTENTS 9 LIST OF COLOUR PLATES 11 LIST OF FIGURES 13 LIST OF TABLES 16 INTRODUCTION 19 Notes 22 ARITA: A PREAMBLE 23 PART I— THE CERAMIC BACKGROUND 37 1— History of Ceramics in Japan 38 Notes 42 2— Imports of Chinese Porcelain before the Seventeenth Century 43 Notes 46 PART II— THE PRODUCTION OF ARITA PORCELAIN IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY 47 3— Materials and Techniques 49 Clay 49 Preparation of the Clay 50 Making 52 Decoration 53 Glaze 54 The Kiln 55 The Firing of the Kiln 58 Kiln Furniture 58 Unpacking the Kiln 62 Overglaze Enamel 62 The Muffle Kiln 63 Gold and Silver 64 Notes 64 4— Classification of the Porcelain Kilns of Arita 65 PART III— SHOKI-IMARI 71 5— Karatsu Stoneware and the Origins of Porcelain in Arita 72 Notes 75 6— Tianqi Porcelain and Shoki-Imari 77 Documentation 79 Notes 84 7— Shoki-Imari, Ko-Kutani, and the Origin of Enamelling in Arita 85 Notes 89 8— Evidence from Consumer Sites of the Market for Shoki-Imari 90 Sites on Kyushu 90 Saga-Ken 90 Miyako Site[en4] 90 The Mode Site[en5] 90 Nagasaki-Ken 90 The Kozen-cho* Site[en6] 90 Fukuoka-Ken 92 The Notame Site 92 The Reisen Site[en7] 92 The Hatae Site[en8] 92 Sites on Honshu 92 Osaka-Fu 92 Sakai City[en9] 92 Nara-Ken 92 Nara Women's College[en10] 92 Okayama-Ken 92 The Hyakkengawa Taima Site 92 The Futsuka-ichi Site[en11] 92 Tokyo-To 92 The Toritsu Hitotsubashi koko* Site[en12] 92 The Shiba Rikyu* Teien[en13] 95 The Tokyo Daigaku Konai* Rigaku-Bu 7-Gokan* Site[en14] 95 Notes 97 9— History and Dating of Shoki-Imari 98 Phase One 99 Phase Two 100 Phase Three 106 Notes 109 PART IV— THE KILNS 111 10— The Porcelain Kilns of Arita 112 Central Arita 112 Chokichidani* 112 Hiekoba 113 Hokaoyama 114 Iwayakawachi (Also Called Iwayakochi, Tenjinmachi, or Koraisan) 114 Kodaru No. 2 (or Kodaru Shingama) 114 Kodaru 115 Maemaedani 115 Maenobori 115 Nakadaru 116 Nakashirakawa 116 Nishinobori 116 Odaru 116 Sarugawa 116 Shimoshirakawa 117 Shirayaki 118 Tanigama 118 Tengudani (Also Called Kamishirakawa) 118 Tenjinyama 120 Yamagoya 121 Nangawara 121 Higuchi 121 Komononari 122 Tenjinmori 122 South-West Arita 124 Haraake 124 Ipponmatsu 124 Zenmondani 125 Toshaku Mukae No Hara 125 North-West Arita 125 Hirose 125 Kake No Tani 125 Komizo 126 Maruo 127 Yagenji 127 Yamabeta 127 West Arita 130 Benzaiten 130 Kotake* 130 Mukae No Hara 130 Seiroku No Tsuji 131 North-East Arita 131 Gezuyabu 131 Kusunokidani 131 Itanokawachi 132 Danbagiri 132 Hyakken 132 Kama No Tsuji (Not to Be Confused with the Later Nangawara Kama No Tsuji) 134 Tsutsue 135 Uchida Kuromuta 135 Kotoge 135 Taitani 135 Ureshino 135 Fudoyama* 135 Umino and Niwage 136 Hasami 136 Hata No Hara 136 Notes 137 PART V— CONTEMPORARY DOCUMENTATION 138 11— Japanese Documentation 139 Notes 143 12— Dutch Documentation 144 Bills of Lading 144 Notes 151 Appendix 1— Dated Pieces, Sherds, and Boxes 152 Appendix 2— Chemical Content of Arita Porcelain As Analysed by Atomic Absorption Spectrometer 156 BIBLIOGRAPHY 157 Books in Western Languages 157 Books in Japanese 157 Series of Books in Japanese, Some with English Summaries 158 Articles in European Languages 158 Articles in Japanese Language 158 Kiln-Site Reports 159 Excavation reports 160 Manuscripts 161 GLOSSARY 162 A 162 B 162 C 162 D 162 E 162 F 162 G 162 H 162 I 162 J 162 K 162 M 162 N 163 O 163 P 163 R 163 S 163 T 163 Y 163 PHOTOGRAPHIC CREDITS AND LICENCES 164 PLATE SECTION 165 INDEX 228 A 228 B 228 C 228 D 228 E 228 F 228 G 228 H 228 I 229 J 229 K 229 M 229 N 230 O 230 P 230 R 230 S 230 T 230 U 230 V 230 W 230 Y 230 Z 231

This is the first book in English to document what Japanese porcelain was like before it was "discovered" in Europe, and thereafter made with a view to foreign, rather than Japanese, tastes. It is also the first in-depth study of the working practices of the pottery kilns of the seventeenth century. Impey assesses the individual kilns at Arita and reconstructs a detailed and fascinating picture of how these beautiful, little-known objects were made.