When a lump of clay is transformed into a cup by a craftsman's hands, and natural mineral spots crystallize into stars in the kiln fire, a master cup named "Kongji" begins a dialogue with the earth and time on the tea table of Tongxin She Teahouse.
The unglazed clay is its backbone. Sourced from deep mountains and refined through countless processes, it embodies a texture that is simple yet tenacious. The dense natural sesame-like mineral spots on the inner wall are like stars falling into the night sky. When tea is poured in, these "stars" float and sink in the amber liquid. Each sip is a private conversation between the tip of the tongue and the earth—an imprint of mineral soil forged in the kiln fire, an eternal echo of the earth's breath within the cup.
The crackled glaze is its growth vein. Unlike the regular crackles of celadon, it is a trace that "grows" with time. Initially, fine lines lurk on the glaze surface; after repeated nourishment by tea, the lines deepen and warm, eventually blooming into amber hues unique to tea lovers. The 100ml golden capacity is a temperature container tailored for the palm. When held full, the warmth of tea and the rusticity of clay offer the most reassuring comfort to tea drinkers.
At first glance, its exterior is as rugged as a millennium-old cliff. The original clay texture, preserved by hand, carries an unpolished wildness, as if a fragment of time was directly plucked from the mountains. Upon closer touch, the inner wall is as smooth as jade. Craftsmen meticulously grind it into a palm-fitting curve. The collision between the rough exterior and the delicate interior perfectly interprets the wabi-sabi aesthetic's truth of "imperfect yet complete"—refinement within rusticity, tenderness within roughness.
It is a cup that "grows". When new, its glaze is calm; after repeated nourishment by aged Pu'er, rock tea, and other aged teas, the crackle lines gradually take on the color of the tea, shifting from light gold to amber. Each mark is a footnote to a tea story.
For tea lovers, the process of nurturing it is a joint practice with the vessel. Every time tea is brewed, it is a process of the tea infiltrating the clay, and also a moment for the tea lover to calm their mind. One day, when you suddenly notice the cup wall glowing with a温润 amber sheen, you will know that the mornings and evenings of solitary tea drinking, the joyful conversations with friends over tea, have all been transformed into imprints of time, preserved within this cup.
It is an exclusive confidant of aged Pu'er tea. The porous clay's strong adsorption awakens the mellow depth of aged tea, making the layered aroma of time-aged tea more prominent in the cup. It is also a visual focal point on the tea table. The natural mineral spots scatter like stars, and the handcrafted texture is like a trace of time. Placed on the tea table, it becomes a "simple yet moving" aesthetic symbol.
Beginning with the rusticity of clay, reaching perfection through the craftsman's delicacy, and culminating in the warmth of time—this "Kongji" master cup awaits you at Tongxin She Teahouse to embark on a journey with tea, with the vessel, and with time.