Description
 
Yixing Zisha Base Clay Ancient Arbor Xishi Teapot (345ml)
 
This Zishi teapot is fully handmade using zisha base clay ( 底槽清 ) and is made into a living ancient arbor. The pot lid, handle and mouth is made of  blended clay. Aged purple and fault clay are well mixed to create blend clay with this pattern resembling the branches of an old arbor. Meanwhile the pot body is made with base clay resembling the trunk of the arbor.  This Base clay pot is high fired at 1180 degree Cel. With 3 type of clays in the pot, it takes extremely high skill and experience to create a perfect piece.
 
Base Clay is produced in the Huanglong Mountain, Yixing, Jiangsu Province. It is produced at the bottom layer of the purple clay sediement ore. Its composition is extremely pure with very fine clay particles. The color is reddish brown. After the closure of Well No. 4 in Huanglongshan, there is an increasing shortage of base clay resources, and the weathered base clay is becoming more and more precious. The kiln temperature is about 1180 ° C, and the shrinkage ratio is about 12%. It is widely used in the famous pots of modern times. It pairs very well with raw /  ripe puerh, oolong tea (light roasted), black tea, green tea etc.
 
This teapot holds approximately 345ml (+/- 5ml) and features a  flat filter and tight-fitting lid. The walls of this teapot are relatively thin, but it allows for a very stable and comfortable hand feel that has to be experienced to fully appreciate.
 
Zisha (‘purple sand’) describes the reddish-brown color of the sedimentary soil which settled in ancient lakes and is now buried deep underground. The clay is compressed under heavy sedimentary rock formations throughout the Yixing region, southwest of Shanghai, in China’s Jiangsu province. Huanglong Mountain near Dingshu township has been the source of high quality purple clay ore for centuries. The mountain itself is rather ordinary – neither grand or pretty – but it is 350 million years old.These teapots are prized because their unglazed surfaces absorb traces of the beverage and develop a patina, which enhances the taste, color and aroma of fine tea.