By Rafe Calder
In 1682 the royal government of the Ryukyu Kingdom gathered three kilns into one district of Naha. That is the date the sources give for the start of present-day Tsuboya ware. Everything since is a variation on a decision taken by officials who wanted their pottery in one place.
The word and the place
Kogei Japan, a site promoting traditional crafts, says Tsuboya ware is made mainly in the Tsuboya district of Naha City, with production also in Yomitan and Onna in Okinawa Prefecture, and that Okinawans call pottery yachimun. Wikipedia says the pottery is made in Tsuboya, a district of Naha, and puts its beginning in 1682.
The merger of 1682
Kogei Japan names the three kilns brought together: Chibana in Misato, Takaraguchi in Shuri and Wakuta in Naha. Kougeihin, a Japanese traditional-craft database, puts it more loosely, as the late seventeenth century, and says the craft has been passed down in Tsuboya for over 300 years. Wikipedia adds that the pottery rose after the Ryukyu Kingdom came under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate in the seventeenth century. Kogei Japan gives the year 1609 for that change, when Satsuma invaded the kingdom, and says the royal government continued to promote pottery as an important local industry. We leave the politics there.
Two kinds of pot
All three sources divide the ware in two.
- Joyachi, or glazed ware. Wikipedia recognises it by rich enamel decoration. Kougeihin says it is used for tableware, drinking vessels and vases.
- Arayachi, or unglazed ware. Wikipedia calls it the simpler type. Kogei Japan says it was traditionally used for large vessels, including water jars and burial urns. Kougeihin adds that it is relatively large, also called Nanban-yaki, and used mainly for jars and pots.
Clay, slip and glaze
Kogei Japan says joyachi often uses white slip over a reddish clay body. Kougeihin agrees: the body is mainly red clay and a white slip hides it, which gives the warm, off-white look. Kougeihin lists the clays by name for rough and fine firing and for the slip, and says workshops blend white and red clay. It names the glazes: shirugusui, a transparent glaze made from coral limestone and rice husks with white clay added; akagua, amber; ugusuya, green; kurogusui, black; and gosu, cobalt blue. Wikipedia describes the decoration as an overglaze made from natural Okinawan materials such as coral or rice husks and, in its own words, does not call it glaze. Here the sources differ in vocabulary, and we report both.
How it is decorated
Kogei Japan lists line carving, scraping, inlay, a technique called tobashi-kanna, applied relief and hand painting. Kougeihin lists line carving, skewer and finger carving, stamping, scraping, raised application and red painting, and says decoration must be done by hand. Motifs, according to both craft sources, come from Okinawan nature: plants, fish, birds, shrimp, flowers and geometric patterns. Forming is by wheel, including kick wheels, by hand-building, or by mould. Kougeihin says press or plaster moulds are used for bottles and small shisa, wooden moulds for burial urns, and hand-building for shisa.
Firing
Kogei Japan puts joyachi at a single firing of around 1,200 degrees Celsius, with arayachi somewhat cooler. Kougeihin gives roughly 1,200 for joyachi and roughly 1,000 for arayachi. Some pieces, Kogei Japan says, receive red painting and a second firing at a lower temperature. Wikipedia and Kougeihin agree that a climbing kiln was traditional and that gas kilns are now mainstream. Wikipedia gives the reason: climbing kilns produced smoke pollution in nearby residential areas. Kogei Japan says some potters moved their kilns to Yomitan from the 1960s onward.
Shapes to know
Kogei Japan names the distinctive forms: karakara, a drinking vessel; dachibin, a portable bottle; shisa, the guardian lion figure; and zushigame, a burial urn. A buyer shopping for a gift is most likely to meet shisa and tableware. Our reading: because the sources say shisa are hand-built or moulded and tableware is wheel-thrown, a pair of identical shisa is not proof of a mould, and a plate with small irregularities is not proof of a hand. We offer that only as a reason to ask the maker.
The mingei revival
Wikipedia says Yanagi Muneyoshi and other folk-art proponents popularised the style in the Taisho period, 1912 to 1926. Kogei Japan puts the renewed attention in the early Showa period and names three figures: Yanagi Soetsu, Hamada Shoji and Kawai Kanjiro. The two craft pages and the encyclopaedia thus put the revival about a decade apart, and we show both.
Designation
Kogei Japan and Kougeihin agree that the Japanese government designated Tsuboya ware a Traditional Craft on 2 June 1976. Kougeihin lists the main production areas as Naha City, Onna Village and Yomitan Village.
Dates in order
- 1609: Satsuma invades the Ryukyu Kingdom, according to Kogei Japan.
- 1682: three kilns merge in Tsuboya, according to Kogei Japan and Wikipedia.
- 1912 to 1926: the revival, according to Wikipedia.
- Early Showa: renewed attention from mingei figures, according to Kogei Japan.
- 1960s onward: some potters move kilns to Yomitan, according to Kogei Japan.
- 2 June 1976: Traditional Craft designation, according to Kogei Japan and Kougeihin.
What kind of sources these are
Wikipedia, an open encyclopaedia, and two Japanese craft-promotion databases, Kogei Japan and Kougeihin. All three are general reference or promotional pages. We did not read a museum catalogue.
What we left out
Maker names, shop names, prices and opening hours. We also cut the sources’ passages on trade contacts before the seventeenth century, a recognition of one potter in 1985, and the pottery museum, none of which we could check against a second page.
Quick answers
When did Tsuboya pottery begin?
According to Kogei Japan and Wikipedia, present-day Tsuboya ware began in 1682, when the Ryukyu royal government merged three kilns into the Tsuboya district of Naha.
What is the difference between joyachi and arayachi?
Kogei Japan says joyachi is decorated, glazed pottery used for tableware and vases, while arayachi is unglazed pottery traditionally made for large vessels such as water jars.
Is Tsuboya ware a designated traditional craft?
Yes. Kogei Japan and the Kougeihin craft database both say the Japanese government designated it a Traditional Craft on 2 June 1976.
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Roam first. Shop later.