Ohi ware

🏛️ National Cultural Property
This craft is recognized as an official cultural property at the national level.

🌿 Living Tradition
This craft continues to be practiced today and remains part of the community’s cultural life.

🔔 Ritual / Ceremonial Craft
This craft is traditionally used in rituals, ceremonies, or spiritual practices.

Introduction

Ōhi ware (Japanese: 大樋焼, Ōhi-yaki) is a traditional Japanese pottery style from Kanazawa (Ishikawa Prefecture), used primarily for tea-ceremony ware. Originating in the 17th century, Ōhi ware is renowned for its amber-colored glaze (amegawari), hand-formed, wheel-free shaping, and strong connection to the tea aesthetic. Over more than 350 years, the craft has been preserved within a single family line, making Ōhi ware both a distinctive regional tradition and a living heritage of Japanese tea ceramics.

Etymology

The name Ōhi ware comes from the village of Ōhi, near Kanazawa, where the original clay was discovered and first used to produce this style of pottery. The founding potter adopted Ōhi as his family name, and subsequent generations carried on the name as well as the technique.

Origin and Historical Development

The Ōhi tradition began in 1666, when the 5th lord of the Kaga Domain, Maeda Tsunanori, invited tea-master Senso Soshitsu of the Urasenke school to Kanazawa, along with a potter named Chozaemon from the kiln tradition of Raku ware in Kyoto. The potter identified suitable clay in Ōhi village and established the first kiln in 1686. That marked the founding of Ōhi-yaki.

From that time onward, the Ōhi family produced tea bowls and other tea utensils for the Kaga Domain under patronage. The ware remained within the family lineage for generations, each head inheriting the name Ohi Chozaemon, up to the current generation.

In the Meiji era, following the abolition of the feudal domain system, Ōhi ware experienced difficulties due to loss of official patronage. Production was temporarily suspended but revived in 1884 under a new owner; later the tradition returned to the original lineage, continuing through the 20th and 21st centuries.

Materials and Techniques

Ōhi ware is distinguished by:

• Hand-forming without a potter’s wheel — all pieces are shaped by hand using spatula-like tools passed down through generations.
• Dense clay body derived from the local Ōhi deposits — the clay is chosen to withstand abrupt firing conditions.
• Glaze: the characteristic **amber (ame) glaze** — a reddish-yellow to amber-colored glaze, often termed ‘ame-glaze,’ giving the ware its distinctive warm tone.
• Firing method: Fast increase of kiln temperature followed by rapid removal for cooling — a technique inherited from Raku tradition, giving the ware its unique texture and glaze effects.

Because of the hand-forming method and the special firing process, each piece of Ōhi ware is unique; small variations are part of the aesthetic and proof of authenticity.

Characteristics

Pieces of Ōhi ware typically exhibit:

• A warm amber or reddish-yellow glaze with subtle variations in tone and surface sheen.
• Simple, unadorned shapes — often tea bowls, water jars, incense burners — reflecting the wabi-sabi aesthetic of rustic simplicity and understated elegance.
• A tactile, soft texture resulting from hand-modelling rather than wheel-throwing; this gives the work a distinct organic and personal feel.

Cultural Significance

Ōhi ware has played a significant role in the tea-ceremony culture of Kanazawa and the Kaga Domain. As a local expression of Raku-derived aesthetics, it helped to spread the tea culture beyond Kyoto to the Hokuriku region. The continuity of the Ōhi lineage over more than 350 years embodies a rare example of a living family tradition in Japanese ceramics.

Today, Ōhi ware is regarded both as functional tea ware and collectible art, representing regional identity, historical continuity, and unique craftsmanship.

Modern Production

Modern generations — currently the 10th and 11th generation masters — continue producing Ōhi ware in Kanazawa. Their works maintain traditional hand-shaping and amegawa glazing, while occasionally exploring contemporary forms and expressions.

The family’s former samurai residence now houses the Ohi Museum and Ohi Gallery. The museum exhibits works spanning all generations, and the gallery (redesigned by architect Kengo Kuma) displays and sells modern Ōhi ceramics. Visitors can also experience tea in original Ōhi bowls.

Decline and Revival

The abolition of feudal domains during the Meiji Restoration caused decline in demand and temporary suspension of the kiln’s operation. However, the craft revived in 1884 under new stewardship, and later fully returned to the original Ōhi family line. Since then, the continuity of production has been maintained, surviving modernization and changes in ceramic industry trends.

Collecting and Authentication

Collectors and connoisseurs value Ōhi ware for:

• The distinctive ame glaze — genuine pieces show warm amber tones with subtle variation and soft glow.
• Hand-formed irregularities — slight asymmetry or variations that arise from hand-modelling rather than wheel-throwing, indicating craftsmanship and authenticity.
• Provenance: works signed by successive masters of the Ōhi family (e.g. Ōhi Chozaemon) are especially prized.
• Historical pieces crafted under Kaga-domain patronage — they represent significant cultural heritage.

See also

• Raku ware
• List of traditional crafts of Japan
• Japanese tea-ceremony pottery

References

• “Ohi ware.” Ceramics Story (Turuta.jp). Accessed 2 December 2025.
• “Ōhi Ware — Art Research Center, Ritsumeikan University.” Google Arts & Culture. Accessed 2 December 2025.
• “Ohi Museum and Ohi Gallery.” Ishikawa Travel Guide. Accessed 2 December 2025.
• “The distinctive amber shine of Ohi-yaki.” NihonMono.jp. Accessed 2 December 2025.
• “Hand-molding and rapid firing: the Raku-derived technique behind Ohi ware.” Japan SPOTLIGHT / Ohiyaki Ceramics Overview. Accessed 2 December 2025.