Capacity: Approximately 120ml
We are welcoming the new year with a limited release of lucky red – Zhuni Dahongpao – teapots.
We have included the hand carved characters 弃疾 QiJi at the bottom of each teapot instead of the usual studio stamp. 弃疾 QiJi can be translated as, “dispel sickness.” The characters come from the name of the Song Dynasty poet and general 辛弃疾 Xin QiJi who led his armies to victory against the Jin. He in turn was named after a general from the Han Dynasty, 霍去病 Huo QuBing, famous for his victory over the Huns.
Zhuni Dahongpao is a special grade of zhuni named for its deep red-orange hue. The small amount of zhuni dahongpao ore (unprocessed clay) was handpicked by Lin Hanpeng from zhuni mined from Xiaomeiyao in Yixing. After a few years in storage, Lin’s supply of zhuni dahongpao clay is finally ready.
The ratio of dahongpao ore to regular zhuni ore is said to be 1:100, or 1kg of zhuni dahongpao ore for every 100kg of zhuni ore. Dahongpao zhuni has a greater amount of Fe2O3 iron oxide than regular zhuni giving it a deeper red-orange hue. It also contains a lower percentage of Al2O3 aluminum oxide than regular zhuni, making it more difficult to fire without breaking. The range of temperature for firing zhuni dahongpao successfully is very narrow. It also has a higher shrink rate than regular zhuni, sometimes shrinking as much as 40%.
You can read more about Zhuni Dahongpao here, and more about zhuni clay here.
This teapot was made by Lin Hanpeng and Chen Chunhong Studio. This pot is known as "half-handmade" as the sculptor uses a molding tool to shape the body, and uses his hands for the handle, spout, holes, and smoothing out the body. In fact, no machine was used in it's shaping as the use of the tool is entirely manual.
You can read more about half handmade teapots in our blog entry here.
Preparation Before Use
Yixing Teapots should be prepared before using the first time. This is called "opening the pot". It removes the dust from firing the teapot.
We recommend rinsing the teapot under warm water 3-4 times, then filling the teapot with boiling water and emptying it out 3-4 times. After this the teapot is ready for use.