Miura Chikuken | Tsutsu Chawan Plum Branch | Kyoto Overglaze Enamel | Tea Ceremony Cylindrical Bowl

A tsutsu-chawan (cylindrical tea bowl) by Miura Chikuken of Kyoto — celadon-ash ground with vivid overglaze enamel plum-branch painting in red, white, and olive-gold, titled on the box as "plum tree in snow." Miura Chikuken chawan Kyoto, tsutsu-chawan cylindrical tea bowl, overglaze enamel plum branch ceramic, Japanese winter motif tea bowl, Kyoto signed matcha bowl artist box, ume plum painting chawan, tea ceremony cylindrical vessel, named Kyoto potter tea bowl present a composition of extraordinary visual momentum.

🔹 [ Basic Details ]
• Artist: Miura Chikuken (三浦竹軒) — established Kyoto ceramic lineage
• Technique: Overglaze enamel (uwae) on celadon-ash ground; cylindrical tsutsu form
• Origin: Kyoto, Japan
• Dimensions: W approx. 10 cm, H approx. 9 cm
• Box: Original signed wood box (tomobako), inscribed "plum branch snow scene cylindrical tea bowl"
• Condition: Very good

🔹 [ Cultural & Artistic Insight ]
The Miura Chikuken lineage is rooted in the Kyoto overglaze-enamel tradition that flourished from the Edo period onward. Tsutsu-chawan — the tall cylindrical form — is traditionally associated with winter use in the tea ceremony, its contained shape conserving the warmth of the water during the cold months. To paint plum blossoms on such a form is to condense the entire symbolism of the winter tea gathering into a vessel that will be held between two hands and raised to the lips.

🔹 [ Deep-Dive Commentary ]
The composition on this bowl is bold in a way that Kyoto overglaze rarely risks. The plum trunk sweeps across the full circumference of the cylindrical body, rendered in brown-gold oxide brushwork of real confidence. Red and white blossoms — in different scales and densities — punctuate the branch with the controlled spontaneity that the best overglaze painters achieve only after decades of practice.

The celadon-ash ground is not neutral: it has a soft gray-green presence that mediates between the painted elements and the pale brick-red of the exposed foot. The dark iron-brown rim line anchors the composition at the top, a detail of visual restraint that frames the painting below.

The box inscription — 揺朽梅圖筒茶碗 ("plum branch in decay/winter, cylindrical tea bowl") — carries a poetic intention beyond mere description. The phrase invokes the branch that blooms earliest, in the cold, before any other plant. In the tea tradition, this is the motif of courage and renewal: beauty that does not wait for comfort.

For collectors of Kyoto overglaze, of Miura Chikuken work specifically, or of seasonal tea ceramics, this tsutsu-chawan occupies a clear position: it is a named work, signed, with box, carrying a motif of cultural weight and a visual presence that rewards sustained looking.

【作家物・茶道具 日本語説明】
🔹 [ 基本情報 ]
• 作者：三浦竹軒（京都）
• 技法：上絵付・灰釉地・筒形
• 産地：京都
• 寸法：幅約10cm、高さ約9cm
• 箱：共箱（「揺朽梅圖筒茶碗　竹軒」の書付）
• 状態：良好

🔹 [ 文化的背景 ]
三浦竹軒は京都の上絵付陶芸の伝統を継ぐ作家系譜。筒茶碗は冬季の茶会に用いられる保温性の高い形で、梅の文様は早春の訪れを告げる茶の湯の定番テーマ。本作の「揺朽梅圖」という銘は、寒中に最も早く咲く梅の逞しさを詩的に表現している。

🔹 [ 鑑賞ポイント ]
灰釉地に赤・白・黄金の上絵具で描かれた梅の枝は、筒形の胴を巡るようにダイナミックに展開する。茶褐色の口縁線が構図を引き締め、素地の露出した高台には温かみのある表情がある。冬の茶席に使い込むほどに映える一碗。

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