The most practical teapot of all time?
汉瓦
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han wa
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Han shingle
The Hanwa teapot is one of the few teapots who get their name from one specific aspect of the teapot and not its general shape. It is named after the shape of the lid knob which is a rectangle arranged in a bridge-shape, leading to a half-round profile reminiscent of a 瓦当 wadang, the decorated end piece of a Chinese roof that is either round or half-round. Han indicates the era when this type of half-round shingle was invented, around the 3rd century BC. So in form, the Hanwa teapot represents both types of shingles, the round on in the slightly curved cylindrical teapot body and the half-round shape in the lid.
There are four aspects that we look at in terms of practicality when buying or using a teapot.
1. opening – the bigger the opening, the better for inserting tea leaves or cleaning the pot. Hanwa teapot are broader on top than on the bottom with the widest opening possible, so the opening cannot be bigger than with a Hanwa teapot. The lid is as wide as the teapot itself.
2. lid knob – can you remove and close the lid easily. This is mostly determined by the shape of the lid knob. All teapot designs have a set ratio of the size of the knob and teapot body to be pleasing aesthetically. For example with a really small shipiao knob, it gets too flat to handle, especially with large fingers, increasing the risk of dropping the lid. This is why shipiao teapots are usually bigger. The Hanwa lid knob is easy to grab.
3. Handle – Same idea as with the knob. Is it easy to grab without contorting your fingers or burning yourself? This can happen if there is not enough room in the handle loop, like with very flat teapot shapes. The Hanwa handle offers enough room to comfortably pour tea as the teapot is on the taller side and the handle spans its entire height. Also, the handle is not overly thick, leaving a lot of room in the loop.
4. pouring – maybe the most important one: how smooth is the pouring and is there any dripping. Hanwa teapots provide a good pouring experience because of the wide spout base, making it easy for a good volume of tea to emerge.
Get yourself some ‚Teapot Shapes I‘ and ‚Teapot Shapes II‘ postcards!
LY
