Footed Sometsuke Cup
This Arita ware sake cup is made of bright white porcelain and is raised on a turned pedestal foot below a softly flared rim. Hand-painted cobalt blue floral motifs circle the body, forming a patterned roundel and slender banded borders, which are framed by a fine iron-brown line at the lip. The impression is crisp, luminous, and precise.
Shaped by Arita’s Legacy: This piece also comes from Arita ware, Japan’s first porcelain tradition. Prized for its luminous white body and refined hand-painted details, embodying the harmony of precision and quiet beauty.
Learn more → Discover the Art and Craftsmanship of Arita Ware Porcelain
Gilded Seams Across Cobalt
A gold seam nearly encircles the cup, descending from the rim across the cobalt bands toward the foot, while a second line arcs across the interior. This piece was crafted by Keiko Hata, a lacquer artist trained at Kyoto City University of Arts. She creates contemporary urushi artworks and conserves Buddhist statuary alongside her kintsugi practice. Each break was rejoined with natural urushi over four months and finished with 24K gold to achieve a roiro finish — the highest level of urushi polishing — following methods refined over centuries of Japanese lacquer practice.
Where Gold Meets Blue
At the intersection of the gold and the painted bands, two decorative elements meet on one surface: the cobalt patterning, drawn before firing, and the gold lines marking the cup's restoration, applied after it was broken. Rather than blending into the blue motifs, the gold openly crosses them, revealing the vessel’s history. The cup’s original ornamentation and the record of its restoration now coexist on the same white background, each adding meaning to the other.
