Tea caddy

瀬戸 Seto ware; Potters active in the regions of Seto and Mino in central Japan produced tea caddies in great numbers in imitation of imported Chinese examples. By the 1500s, however, Japanese potters began to stray from accepted Chinese forms. While this caddy still reflects the overall katatsuki (straight shoulder) style, the gentle ripples of the surface more readily suggest the potter’s touch, in contrast to more precisely geometric Chinese examples.