Some Basic Japanese Pottery Forms

While there are many Japanese pottery forms, we'll take a look at a few of the most popular in this post.

Perhaps the most beloved Japanese pottery form is the chawan, the tea bowl. The popular style is actually derived from the simple, disposable rice bowls made by Korean potters.

While the chawan is most often reserved for tea ceremony, the yunomi is a teacup intended for everyday use. A yunomi is taller than it is wide, and often times they are sold as a pair, with one slightly larger than the other (the larger one for the husband, the smaller for his wife).

A Japanese teapot is called a kyusu. A yokode kyūsu has a side handle, a ushirode kyūsu has a rear handle, and a uwade kyūsu has the handle on top.

Most sake cups are essentially a miniature chawan, and come in many different shapes. A choko (which means "boar's snout" for it's shape) is typically a very small sake cup, guinomi (which means "gulp cup") is typically larger. Many people collect guinomi as works of art.

A tokkuri is a sake flask. Again, tokkuri come in many shapes and sizes, and are quite collectible.