During the Tang Dynasty, Tea drinking became widespread, and the method of preparing tea transitioned from simple boiling to a more refined process of decoction. The artistic value of tea utensils began to be appreciated.
Lu Yu listed 24 implements used for tea in the “Chapter Four: Implements” of his classic work, “The Classic of Tea.” By understanding these tools, we can gain insight into the form and function of Tang Dynasty tea utensils and speculate about their tea-drinking methods. Let's take a look at the twenty-four tea implements of the Tang Dynasty and see how many you recognize.
Tang Dynasty Twenty-Four Tea Implements
1
Bowl
A tool for tasting tea. During the Tang Dynasty, Yue Porcelain was favored,
as well as Dingzhou porcelain, Wuzhou porcelain,
Yuezhou porcelain, Shouzhou porcelain, and Hongzhou porcelain.
Yue porcelain was considered the best. Tang Dynasty tea bowls had high feet and were lopsided in shape.
Basket (běn)
Used for storing tea bowls, with specialty paper placed between each bowl to prevent them from clashing.
Brush
Made by binding together palm leaves with dogwood wood, or by inserting the bound end of palm leaves into a bamboo tube to create a brush-like shape,
used for Cleaning tea utensils after use, similar to today's teapot brush.
Basket (jǔ)
A bamboo basket for holding charcoal,
with round or square shapes, approximately one foot two inches tall,
a diameter of seven inches, and also made of wood,
with rattan woven into hexagonal circles around it,
the lid and bottom fit together like a bamboo box, with a smooth edge along the cover.
Kettle (fù)
Used for boiling water and brewing tea, similar to modern Japanese tea kettles.
Made primarily of iron,
there were also ceramic and stone kettles during the Tang Dynasty, and wealthy households might have silver ones.
Tongs
Made of young green bamboo, twelve inches long,
used for roasting tea leaves.
The moisture and aroma of the young green bamboo are released when roasting tea,
enhancing the flavor of the tea with the bamboo fragrance.
Cloth
Commonly known as a dishcloth, now referred to as a tea cloth,
made of coarse silk fabric, two feet long,
typically made in pairs for alternating use, used for wiping utensils.
Dipper
Made from split calabash, or carved from wood, used for scooping water.
Wind Stove
Used for lighting a fire to brew tea,
designed based on Daoist ideas of the five elements and Confucian principles of national motivation,
made of wrought iron, or clay stoves could be used instead.
Charcoal Mallet (tàn zhuā)
A six-sided iron implement, twelve inches long, used for crushing charcoal.
Fire Tongs
Also called fire chopsticks, round and straight,
with a flat top, used for handling charcoal.
Mostly made of iron or malleable copper.
Cross Stand
A cross-shaped object,
with a section cut out of the top board,
used to hold the kettle.
Paper Bag
Made of double-layered thick white vine paper, sewn together,
used for storing roasted tea cakes,
storing the heated tea in it to preserve its aroma.
Grinder, Dusting Brush
The former is for grinding tea, the latter for dusting off the tea.
Sieve Set, Measure
The sieve set actually consists of two items,
the sieve is a fine mesh sieve for sifting tea powder,
the container is a box for storing tea powder, used together with the sieve.
The measure, for determining the amount of tea.
Water Container
Used for storing fresh water, with a capacity of about one dou (approximately ten liters).
Strainer Bag
Used for filtering water for brewing tea, made of copper, wood, or bamboo.
Bamboo Chopsticks
Chopsticks made of bamboo, peach wood, willow wood, etc.
One foot long, with silver sheets wrapped around both ends,
used for stirring the center of the broth when brewing tea to bring out the tea's essence.
Salt Jar, Scoop (cuó gu