Patriotic flat shape – what?
汉扁
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han bian
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Chinese flat shape
This is one of the teapot shapes starting with the character Han. Other examples are the hanwa teapot and handuo teapot. The character Han is very important in Chinese culture and symbolizes Chinese identity. It is also the name of the ethnic majority in China, the Han, so lots of Chinese people will say that they are hanren (‘han people’), speak hanyu (‚han language‘) and write hanzi (‘han characters’). With the other two teapots hanwa and handuo, the character indicated an object from the Han Dynasty. Here with the hanbian, it is meant as a patriotic name.
Bian means ‘flat’, as the opposite of ‘tall’. When looking at the teapot, you will say that it is not that flat, especially compared to other teapots. Why is it called flat?
A Qing Dynasty teapot master 万泉氏 Wan Quanshi is the creator of this teapot. It is derived from a Mansheng teapot named 棋奁 Qilian which is modeled after the jar where the little stones for Weiqi (a board game known also known as ‘Go’) were stored.
Now again about the name: When comparing the original Qilian teapot and the Hanbian teapot, you will see that the Hanbian is indeed a lot flatter than the Qilian, hence the name. Later, another great artist named 程寿珍 Chen Shouzhen created a variation of the hanbian teapot.
The hanbian teapot is divided into an upper and lower part by a curved line that extends into the spout and handle. Managing an elegant, symmetrical and organic curve line is a key factor of making a good hanbian pot. The lid knob mimics the shape of the teapot.
Get yourself some ‚Teapot Shapes I‘ and ‚Teapot Shapes II‘ postcards!
LY
