《宫灯》Gong Deng, 170.3ml, Tie Sha Zhu Ni 铁砂朱泥, made by Craftsman Zhu Jie 朱杰 from the YiXing's renowned family for Tie Sha Zhu Ni 铁砂朱泥 ~ Congratulations to Mr T.A., 1337hrs 26th Apr, Samorin, Slovakia 🇸🇰.
Tie Sha Zhu Ni 铁砂朱泥 is a Yuan Kuan type, i.e. unadulterated and original ZhuNi type.
It is not a type of mixed clay. It is an adulterated Zhu Ni material PICKED AT SITE.
Also note that we are talking about Tie Sha Zhu Ni, not Tie Sha Ni (which is not favoured at all in our fraternity because it is loaded with impurities discovered at site).
Kindly, read on. Thank you dearest Friends! :-D
SInce the advent of steps of translating ZiSha ore -->clay, accompanied by crafting that started in the Ming dynasty carrying onto the Qing, through the Republic era to our current Socialist country, ZiSha crafting entail the working with Zi Ni, Duan Ni, Lü Ni and Hong Ni.
Of the Hong Ni types, we are familiar with Da Hong Ni (Yuan Kuang Da Hong Pao), Xiao Hong Ni, "standard" Ben Shan Zhu Ni, Zhu Ni Da Hong Pao, Xiao Mei Yao Zhu Ni and Zhao Zhuang Zhu Ni.
1) Ore Miners and Ore pickers at Huang Long Shan site in YiXing picking BenShan ZhuNi will know to pick for BenShan ZhuNi, and recognise ores that have high IRON content which will not quality as BenShan ZhuNi.
2) The high IRON content ZhuNi is Tie Sha Zhu Ni.
Artists and Craftsmen will avoid working with Tie Sha Zhu Ni, because it is famous or notorious, for being extremely DIFFICULT to work with. Such high iron content clay imparts a non-sticky character making it tricky and almost impossible to work with.
Tie Sha Zhu Ni is highly difficult to be formed up to a ZiSha piece,
not least a cohesive piece,
even less so: A BEAUTIFUL PIECE!!!
However, for Tie Sha Zhu Ni, only certain few families of Artisans in YiXing will specially AND purposely select ZhuNi ores that have obviously HIGH IRON content.
AND these few families of Artisans choose to work with and form up pots with them.
朱杰 Zhu Jie is the Craftsman whom we trust with wholely Fully-Handmaking, avoiding half-handmaking like the other few families, to retain both: the tactile aura of Fully-Handmade works, and the characteristic fluffy inner wall 内壁泥门疏松 to augment the star quality of ZiSha we all hold so dear: porosity.
Fully-Handmaking is a Craft dear to us Chinese Art fraternity.
Our Chinese government has also formed a specialised Department of The Arts for ZiSha Arts and Craft.
It is a skill and PROFESSION.
The years of dedication, apprenticeship, learning and practicing, required. The crafting with various types and designs of pots requiring very different approaches to the body and the overlying and underlying slabs, yes, the different approachs and understanding of the construction behind the seemingly simple facades and surfacing, dexterity of fingers, countless ways of approaches and construction required for different shapes ~ all in a dedicated lifetime.
Fully-Handmaking is an onerous journey requiring a lifetime of learning and practice.
Therefore, our Cao Family only trusts Zhu Jie, not the few other families. He has returned from his religious sabbatical, and is back. He will start the gruelling crafting again, and he tries to bring one or two pieces for all of you friend, every month starting in June 2025. However, we cannot wait, and we "ransacked" his cabinet :-D for you friends, and he gave up this beautiful piece, his Gong Deng, to be purchased by the lucky patron first for this month of April! All future pieces will be priced at $695 at least each as well. His precious lovely Gong Deng is here to sound off the happy ZiSha gong!
Despite the concentration sapping and wearying nature (extremely cumbersome during crafting) of the process of Fully-Handmaking with this Tie Sha Zhu Ni, Craftsman Zhu Jie will strive very hard to bring one or two alive per month starting June 2025.
Tie Sha Zhu Ni works are used by us because they are amazing in steeping and brewing up Oolong teas, High Fragrance tea types, White Teas, Green Teas and Black Teas (Hongcha). The high iron content imparts a fast uptake in temperature from your hot water of 100degC, allowing superb brewing of Oolong tea types. Retaining the classic porosity of ZiSha, having a fast uptake of temperature quickly up to 100degC thoroughly for the whole body of the pot, we enjoy luscious Oolong steepings. The high iron content is evident and lovingly visible so, by virtue of the multiple black dots throughout the surface of this work by Zhu Jie. Not easy to wait for one to appear and we thank Craftsman Zhu Jie for coming back and being very generous to avail this first piece for two years!
(Minor blemish on the inner wall close to the front right quarter, is not a defect).
Here with us in our happy family of true ZiSha connoisseurs and friends, you witness 90-120 photos taken of EACH Fully-Handmade ZiSha work here.
Compare this to elsewhere: factory bosses of jigger-machined non-zisha pots contribute downstream to their retailers: 5-10 stock photos for each non-zisha pot model, used to sell a stock of 10, 20, 30 jigger-machined non-zisha pots per model. I.e. 5-10 photos to sell hundreds of one model.
We at RealZiSha, take 90-120 photos, fresh, of EACH, ONE, Fully-Handmade ZiSha work. Together with our sacrificial and hardworking Craftsmen and Artists committed to honest true Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and Craft, we at RealZiSha go the aeons' distance.
BRING ONE HOME, USE IT and you will know all about Fully-Handmade ZiSha, the feel of real and quality YiXing ZiSha, the nurturing of Patina, how true ZiSha Patina feels and looks like, the Zenith Tea Taste that only Pure and Good Quality ZiSha can give you, and equally important: the Aura exuding from a Fully-Handmade ZiSha Work which others simply can't bring forth, all from the hands of Craftsman Zhu Jie's skills. You will know everything then.
If he works 30 days a month without a single day of rest (no family time), he will craft 10-12 pots.
If he crafts for 25 days (five days of rest a month), his output will be 8-10 pots.
The success rate for Zi Ni (e.g. Di Cao Qing, Lao Zi Ni, Da Shui Tan etc) and Duan Ni (e.g. Jiang Po Ni, Qing Hui Duan, etc) is 70% on average. Some times the whole batch of 10 may fail. We have seen our Craftsmen suffer like this very often.
The success rate for Zhu Ni (e.g. Xiao Mei Yao Zhu Ni) pots is 60%, or 70% with most optimism and at the very, very best. Unfortunately.
All of us at RealZiSha of course, hope for one another, professional colleagues and all, that all the pots will survive firing at the kiln successfully.
[For ZiSha models/designs that are very challenging and more complicated to craft, the time taken to craft will be longer, and the failure rate will be higher as well. Zi Sha by its virtue, have the highest shrinkage rate of all ceramic clay. Zi Ni and Duan Ni thus have that 70% success rate, while Zhu Ni has even higher shrinkage rate and thus even lower success rate (the lowest of all ceramic clay.)]
Our Craftsmen are wholeheartedly committed to the cause of Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and their strictness with their craft and dedication earn our respect. We give a big Thank You all of these Craftsmen, for they are saving what is our common precious tea culture: Tea + Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and Craft. Your support is critical to their livelihood and the existence of this craft for all of the tea fraternity.
Thank you Friends!
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Again, another tremendous labor of love by our trusted and committed collaborative Craftsman Zhu Jie. It is a team effort and we thank you dearest Friends for your grandest support to the honest and the dedicated Craftsladies and Craftsmen here left to fend the Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art.
The lines and detailing speak of Craftsman Zhu Jie's EXTREME CARE AND TIME taken to craft each part, each pot. Hold one, hold up one, swing the work around. Carefully examine his Fully-Handmade work. Look at it from afar, from near, and it will grow on you, with fine detailing with MUCH THOUGHT on each part, with MUCH TIME spent on every part, section. Because this is what Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art should be, and HOW FULLY-HANDMADE ZISHA ART is so different from and light years ahead of the ubiquitous jigger-machined pots and half-handmade pots masquerading under the sales tagline of "fully-handmade zisha" pots. These latter JM/HHM pots are made in what we call 流水线 a.k.a. 'Factory-Line operation' whereby the main pot body after being jigger-machined or coming off from the mould, is passed to the next worker who fits on the spout, and subsequently this second worker will pass the pot on to another worker who will in turn fit on the handle. Continuing so, the pressed lid is likewise passed to another worker who fit on the lid knob. EACH WORKER has NO IDEA what the other one is doing, and they are always working on fixed time lines stated by the boss. For example, the worker being "passed the baton" a pot with the spout just fixed onto the body by his colleague, will only focus on fixing on the handle, with nil to little regard to WHETHER THE HANDLE fixed on will be cohesive with the spout. Each worker has NO idea of HOW THE FINAL POT WILL LOOK LIKE. Beyond poor craftsmanship and clay, the result of such processes are ugly pots with poor cohesiveness which experienced Artists, Craftsmen and collectors will tell from a metre away. Experienced people in us, do not need to pick up a pot to check whether it is fully-handmade or made of zisha, we can tell from a metre away just by looking at the pot.
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The keywords are: Detailing and Cohesiveness.
A GOOD Fully-Handmade ZiSha Work combines great detailing and cohesiveness.
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Customer Reviews
Great clay, excellent craftsmanship, sturdy, very nice water flow, does not leak. As always, packaging and delivery was excellent, our postman throws the parcels from the street to the front door (really) and never I got damaged pot from Realzisha. Thank you.
Customer Reviews
Great clay, excellent craftsmanship, sturdy, very nice water flow, does not leak. As always, packaging and delivery was excellent, our postman throws the parcels from the street to the front door (really) and never I got damaged pot from Realzisha. Thank you.
