Purple Clay Through The Dynasties To Modern Times
Today, tea lovers worldwide are proud of their tasteful purple clay teapots. They understand that a purple clay teapot both has functional uses and is an elaborate art form. Purple clay teapots are exclusively made in Yixing, a tiny town in southern China's Jiangsu province. Potters today incorporate many traditional forms of Chinese art. But many people don't know the history of these pots, so this article will show you some milestones in the evolution of purple clay.
The first purple clay teapot came from a cool idea
The first purple clay teapot was invented in the middle of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). At that time, loose-leaf tea became more widely available and people sought to improve their teapots.
An ancient Chinese book holds an account of how the first purple clay teapot was devised. In an accidental opportunity, a boy by the name of Gong Chun found that some local residents were producing jugs out of a special material called purple clay. He was inspired right away: What if I take the purple clay and craft a teapot? He immediately put his idea into practice. He gathered up some purple clay, washed and filtered it, then handcrafted his dream.
He showed this pot to his friends. They were surprised by his novel yet somewhat plain creation. And when they sampled tea brewed in the pot, they found out it was much more delicious and savory than before. They saw this pot as a remarkable innovation, and called it a Gong Chun Pot in honor of that observant and creative boy. Since then, a great number of potters have been imitating this classic style.
Note: An imitation Gong Chun Pot made by contemporary master potter Gu Jingzhou was sold for over $25,000 US dollars.
In the late Ming and Qing dynasties
In the Ming dynasty, master potters sought to make graceful teapots with their own designs. For instance, some of them created new styles based on bronze vessels, which were ornate and reflected the solemn attitudes of the falling dynasty.
Some craftsmen started to copy lively objects with their purple clay teapots at the beginning of the Qing dynasty (1644 - 1912). The images included nuts, fruits, wild creatures, and things like this. In addition, some master potters would stamp their seal on the lid of their works. They would also sign their name on the base, so people could easily identify the masterpieces and their creators. This practice is still very common today.
Some generations later, the bamboo knife was brought into use. It allowed artisans to carve graceful Chinese characters and elegant landscapes on their creations. Thus, more traditional arts were involved into purple clay teapots, such as calligraphy, Chinese painting, and ancient poetry. Some teapots have entire verses or songs written on them.
Fall, then rise after the imperial age
Unfortunately in the early 20th century, purple clay handiwork experienced a depression period. But over the last thirty years, a number of master potters have come to the fore. These proficient craftsmen have studied traditional skills, and they dare to innovate past designs.
However, natural resources are not infinite. Purple clay is inevitably going to be depleted sooner or later. To protect this valuable reserve, the Chinese administration enacted laws to limit the amount of purple clay that can be extracted from the Yixing mines. Presently, only a relatively small quantity of purple clay is allowed to be mined annually. So real purple clay teapots are becoming harder and harder to find.