Traditional craft
Tsuboya Yaki
壺屋焼
Okinawa's yachimun pottery from Naha, with bold glazed tableware, big unglazed jars, sake pourers and the shisa lions that guard island roofs.
Key facts
- Officially recognised
- 2 June 1976
- Type
- Ceramics
- Region
- Kyushu & Okinawa
- Official name in Japanese
- 壺屋焼
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 那覇市、国頭郡恩納村、中頭郡読谷村
Yachimun, Okinawa's pottery
Okinawans call pottery yachimun. Tsuboya ware divides into two kinds. Joyachi is glazed, with Okinawa's own colours and patterns. Arayachi, also called nanban-yaki, is unglazed and fairly large, mostly sake and water jars. There are uniquely Okinawan shapes too: the karakara sake pourer, the crescent-shaped dachibin flask and shisa lion figures. It is made in Naha, Onna and Yomitan in Okinawa.
White slip and bold carving
Pieces are thrown, pressed or moulded, then covered in white slip by dipping, pouring or sprinkling and decorated by scraping away the slip or by inlay. Shisa for rooftops are made by hand. Joyachi is glazed and fired at about 1,200°C; arayachi is unglazed and fired at about 1,000°C.
Three kilns become one
In the late 17th century, the Ryukyu court brought together three kilns, Chibana in Misato, Takaraguchi in Shuri and Wakuta in Naha, in what is now Tsuboya in Naha. Later, because the kilns produce heavy smoke that is hard to manage in the city, some workshops moved their kilns to Yomitan.
Good to know
- A karakara sake pourer or a dachibin flask makes a very Okinawan souvenir.
- A small pair of shisa is a popular gift; in Okinawa they are placed on roofs and gates to ward off evil.
Questions travellers ask
What is yachimun?
The Okinawan word for pottery.
What is a shisa?
A lion figure placed on roofs and gates in Okinawa to ward off evil, often made by Tsuboya potters.
Where it comes from
More crafts from the same area
Local foods from the same area
Heritage stories from the same area
Sources
We checked the facts on this page against these sources.