Kyo Ware Futa-oki Lid Rest | Silver Overglaze Pine by Heian Toho | Tomobako

[ PHASE A — FIRST IMPRESSION ]

🔹 [ BASIC DETAILS ]
• Artist: Heian Toho
• Origin: Kyoto, Japan
• Material: Kyo ware with silver overglaze
• Motif: Pine (Matsu)
• Era: made_2000_2024
• Box: Tomobako (artist's wooden presentation box)
• Condition: Good, carefully inspected

🔹 [ Cultural & Artistic Insight ]
A cylinder of deep silver ground, barely the span of a hand. Painted across its surface — pine boughs reaching left and right, their needles rendered in layered teal and emerald, the trunk weathered to ochre and rust. The rim catches a fine line of gilt. The whole piece holds the stillness of a winter garden at dawn.

[ PHASE B — CRAFT & CULTURAL INSIGHT ]

Heian Toho is a Kyoto-based ceramic artist working in the Kyo ware (Kyoyaki) tradition — a lineage known for refined hand-painting, rich enamel overglaze, and close collaboration with the tea ceremony world. The name "Heian" evokes the ancient capital itself, and that inheritance is visible here: silver-ground overglaze (gin-saike) as a foundation, with iro-e pine motif applied in multiple firings to achieve the dimensional quality the branches carry.

The pine (matsu) is among the most enduring symbols in Japanese decorative art — steadfast through seasons, present at New Year, carried into ceremony as a declaration of continuity. On a futa-oki, placed beside the kettle to receive the lid during the preparation of tea, the motif is not decorative in the casual sense. It is part of the ritual grammar of the setting.

[ PHASE C — DEEP-DIVE COMMENTARY ]

The futa-oki (蓋置) occupies a precise and understated role in the tea procedure: it steadies the kettle lid during temae, holds the ladle, and anchors the visual balance of the temae-za. In formal settings, the choice of futa-oki signals season, occasion, and the host's aesthetic intention with the same weight as the tea bowl itself.

This example reads as a winter or new year piece — the pine aligning with the January–February season in the tea calendar, where matsu motifs appear on utensils as expressions of renewal. The silver ground amplifies the sense of cool air and reflected light, while the green and blue of the painted needles retain warmth. Together they hold a tension that is characteristic of Kyo ware at its most accomplished: colour and restraint occupying the same surface.

The form — cylindrical, straight-walled — is among the quieter futa-oki shapes. It does not assert itself. It functions.

🔹 [ Deep-Dive Commentary ]
Condition is excellent. The overglaze is fully intact with no visible chips, cracks, or loss of enamel. Comes with the original artist-signed tomobako (wooden presentation box), which carries the calligraphy of the kiln mark and confirms provenance.

[ PHASE D — FOR THE COLLECTOR ]

Dimensions: approx. 5 cm diameter × 5.5 cm height
Condition: Excellent — no damage, overglaze intact
Box: Original tomobako (共箱) included
Artist: Heian Toho (平安桐鳳), Kyoto
Technique: Kyo ware, silver overglaze ground (gin-saike), iro-e pine motif
Origin: Kyoto, Japan

Suitable for active use in tea ceremony or display as a seasonal utensil object.

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[ 日本語解説 ]

京焼・平安桐鳳作の銀彩松文蓋置です。銀彩を地に、色絵で松の枝を丁寧に描き込んだ格調ある意匠。松は茶道具において冬・新年の季節を象徴する文様であり、蓋置という茶手前における実用の器に施されることで、その意味はより深くなります。共箱付き、状態良好。

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🔹 [ 日本語解説 ]
京焼・平安桐鳳作の銀彩松文蓋置。銀彩地に色絵で松を描いた格調ある意匠です。蓋置として茶手前での実用はもちろん、飾り物としても季節感のある一品。共箱付きで状態良好。

🔹 [ SHIPPING & PACKAGING ]
• Dispatch: Within 1-6 business days
• Carrier: Japan Post EMS / UPS (with tracking)
• Packaging: Carefully wrapped with protective materials