natsume　棗

KEY WORD :　architecture / tea houses

A tea caddy for storing weak green powdered tea. Also called *usuchaki 薄茶器. The name natsume derived from the shape, which is similar to a Chinese date, natsume or jujube. The origin of this type of tea caddy is attributed to Haneda Gorou 羽田五郎 who lived near the Hokaimon 法界門 at the temple Myoukakuji 妙覚寺 in Kyoto, around the time of the rule of Ashikaga Yoshimasa 足利義政 (1433-90) in the Muromachi period, when the drinking of tea ceremonial was in its earliest stage. Natsume have various sizes and shapes: There are long, flat natsume, chamferred ones; styles favored by Sen Rikyuu 千利休 (1522-91), sen rikyuugata 千利休形 called kawatarou 河太郎; shirifukurami 尻膨 with large bottoms; the so-called tea-pail type, chaoke 茶桶; those with a bulge in the middle doubari 胴張; and those with a red top kouaka 甲赤. The lid may be overlapping okibuta 置蓋 or in the styles of a medicine box inrou-zukuri 印籠造. Natsume may be made of wood and dry lacquer *kanshitsu 乾漆, bamboo, lacquer over layers of paper ikkanbari 一閑張, ceramic, metal, or even black quartz. Some natsume are coated with black wax kurorounuri 黒蝋塗, some with a type of red lacquer, shutame 朱溜, some with lacquer over various colors shunkei-nuri 春慶塗, or a rubbed lacquer coating, suriurushi 摺漆. For decoration gold or silver powder was sometimes sprinkled over pear skin lacquer nashiji 梨地, and sometimes oil paint was used. Carved lacquer horiurushi 彫漆 lacquer and shell inlaid *raden 螺鈿 was also used.

REFERENCES:

EXTERNAL LINKS:

NOTES:

(C)2001 Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System.　No reproduction or republication without written permission. 掲載のテキスト・写真・イラストなど、全てのコンテンツの無断複製・転載を禁じます。