{"product_id":"black-raku-tea-bowl-by-shoraku-kuro-raku-matcha-chawan-unused-with-signed-box","title":"Black Raku Tea Bowl by Shoraku - Kuro-Raku Matcha Chawan Unused with Signed Box","description":"Experience authentic Japanese tea culture with this Black Raku Tea Bowl by Shoraku. This Kuro-Raku Matcha Chawan serves as a Kyoto Raku Tradition and Handmade Wabi Sabi Ceramic, featuring Deep Black Glaze Art and Fire Flash Character—a must-have for any Art Collector seeking Japanese Tea Ceremony Bowl and Zen Contemplative Ware.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ BASIC DETAILS ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e• Artist: Shoraku (松楽) — Kyoto Raku tradition\u003cbr\u003e• Technique: Kuro-raku (黒楽) — hand-shaped black Raku with tong-pulled firing\u003cbr\u003e• Era: Contemporary (Heisei–Reiwa period)\u003cbr\u003e• Origin: Kyoto, Japan\u003cbr\u003e• Dimensions: Diameter approx. 9 cm, Height approx. 9.5 cm\u003cbr\u003e• Box: Signed paulownia wood box — \"黒 茶碗 松楽造\"\u003cbr\u003e• Condition: Unused — pristine, never held tea\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ CULTURAL \u0026amp; ARTISTIC INSIGHT ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBlack Raku — kuro-raku — stands at the philosophical center of Japanese tea culture. When Sen no Rikyu commissioned Chojiro to create the first Raku tea bowls in the late 16th century, he was seeking a vessel stripped of all decoration, where the conversation between hand and clay would be the only expression. Four centuries later, the tradition continues in Kyoto, where artists like Shoraku maintain this unbroken dialogue between fire, glaze, and human intention.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis bowl's tall cylindrical form (tsutsugata) marks it as a winter tea bowl — designed to retain heat and cradle the warmth of thick koicha matcha. The deep black surface carries a subtle reddish flash (hi-iro) where the glaze thinned during its violent extraction from the kiln — pulled at peak temperature with iron tongs, then rapidly cooled. This flash is not a flaw but a record of the firing moment itself.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e*\"Black absorbs everything — light, heat, attention. What remains is presence.\"*\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ DEEP-DIVE COMMENTARY ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**The Raku Process**: Unlike all other ceramic traditions, Raku bowls are individually pulled from the kiln at peak temperature — roughly 1000°C — using iron tongs. This violent extraction creates the characteristic glaze surface that no other firing method can achieve. The thermal shock as the glowing bowl meets ambient air produces unpredictable surface effects that make each piece unique.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Kuro-Raku Specifically**: Black Raku achieves its color through a lead-based glaze that turns intensely black when pulled from the kiln and rapidly cooled. The reddish flash (hi-iro) visible on this bowl occurs where the glaze is thinner, allowing the iron in the clay body to oxidize during cooling. This subtle color variation — called \"keshiki\" (景色, literally \"scenery\") — is prized by tea practitioners as evidence of the firing's singular drama.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Winter Form**: The tsutsugata (cylinder shape) of this bowl is specifically suited for winter tea gatherings (ro season, November through April). The tall walls insulate the thick matcha, keeping it warm during the slow, meditative pace of formal tea. The narrow opening concentrates the tea's fragrance and steam.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Unused Condition**: An unused Raku tea bowl carries special significance. In the tea world, a bowl's value evolves through use — the first tea ceremony where it serves is called its \"debut\" (seki-iri). This bowl awaits that inaugural moment, offering its new owner the opportunity to be part of its story from the very beginning.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ 日本語解説 ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e【基本情報】\u003cbr\u003e• 作家：松楽\u003cbr\u003e• 技法：黒楽（手捏ね・引き出し焼成）\u003cbr\u003e• 時代：現代（平成〜令和）\u003cbr\u003e• 産地：京都\u003cbr\u003e• 寸法：口径約9cm、高さ約9.5cm\u003cbr\u003e• 付属：共箱\u003cbr\u003e• 状態：未使用\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e【解説】\u003cbr\u003e京都の楽焼師・松楽による黒楽茶碗。筒形の堂々たる姿に、深い黒釉が全体を覆う。一部に赤い火色（ひいろ）が現れ、引き出し焼成の瞬間を記録する。利休が長次郎に求めた「装飾を排し、手と土の対話のみで成立する器」の精神を正統に継承。未使用品のため、初席入りの機会をそのまま待つ一碗。冬の濃茶に最適な筒形。\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ SHIPPING \u0026amp; PACKAGING ]\u003cbr\u003e• Dispatch: Within 1-6 business days\u003cbr\u003e• Carrier: Japan Post EMS \/ UPS (with tracking)\u003cbr\u003e• Packaging: Carefully wrapped with protective materials\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e*Pulled from the kiln at a thousand degrees — the bowl remembers that moment in every surface it shows.*","brand":"The Modern Zen Archive","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":61609799680370,"sku":"260220_2018","price":512.0,"currency_code":"AED","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0960\/5680\/3698\/files\/m54745672966_1.jpg?v=1771566387","url":"https:\/\/checkout.themodernzenarchive.com\/products\/black-raku-tea-bowl-by-shoraku-kuro-raku-matcha-chawan-unused-with-signed-box","provider":"The Modern Zen Archive","version":"1.0","type":"link"}