Capacity: Approximately 150ml
This is an yixing teapot made from benshan lüni 本山绿泥, a rarer kind of Yixing clay (zisha) with a pale yellow tone. This clay is favoured for rounding out the harsher notes of some teas. It is very porous compared to other zisha and is better at retaining heat.
You can read more about benshan lüni clay, and other varieties of duanni clay, in our blog entry here.
This teapot was fired in a traditional wood kiln in Yixing. The pattern, color and finish are the result of being fired uncovered in a wood kiln for 3 days and 4 nights. The pine wood ash falls on the surface of the teapot forming a natural glaze that is sometimes glossy black, red, brown, yellow, green or any combination of these colors. Wood Fired Yixing Teapots each have their own special appearance, no two are the same. Photos are of actual teapot.
Learn more about our Wood Fired Yixing Teapots here:
https://www.mudandleaves.com/blog/wood-kiln-yixing-teapots
This pot is known as "half-handmade" as the sculptor shapes the main body by hand using a moulding tool. The handle, spout, holes, and the finishing touches are done by hand. 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.
This teapot was made by Lin Hanpeng and Chen Chunhong Studio. The stamp at the bottom of the teapot may vary from that shown in the photos. The teapot stamp may have the mark of Lin Hanpeng, Chen Chunhong or the mark of Mud&Leaves in Chinese Characters: 泥葉堂。 All three stamps are used exclusively in connection with Lin Hanpeng and Chen Chunhong Studio.
A sample of this clay (from an electric fired teapot) was sent for testing by an independent lab using Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometry (EDXRF). EDXRF is a preferred method for testing, as it is non-destructive, and provides immediate data on the elemental composition of the material. The results (testing sheet photo included below) show no chemical additives. Please note that since the sample came from a teapot that wasn't wood fired, testing for this teapot would show different results as the testing would reflect the content of the wood fired ash glaze. The information provided in the sheet below is for reference of the batch of clay only. For more information on the testing and what the results mean, please see this article.
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 two or three times, then filling the teapot with boiling water and emptying it out two to three times. After this the teapot is ready for use.