Kutani Ware Cat Shaped Plate

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£22.00

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Material: Ceramic
Kutani-九谷焼

Dimensions:

Dishwasher and microwave safe.

Not suitable for direct flame or oven use.

Wash promptly after use with kitchen detergent and a soft sponge or cloth.

Avoid cleansers or nylon scouring pads, as these can scratch the painted design.

Avoid strong impacts and sudden changes in temperature.

The unglazed base can mark delicate surfaces; use a mat or coaster underneath where needed.

A fine crackle (kannyu) may appear naturally from firing; this is a normal characteristic rather than a fault, though the surface is absorbent, so tea and other stains can catch in it more easily over time.

At a glance

- Kutani yaki (九谷焼) porcelain, Harekutani, Nomi City, Ishikawa Prefecture; overglaze colour tradition begun with Ko Kutani, the earliest Kutani style, in the early Edo period (1603 to 1868)
- Whole dish shaped like a cat in profile, not a round plate with a cat drawn on it; available in blue (irregular patches), green (a striped tail only), or red (fine speckled flecks)
- Approx. 26 x 12.2cm; presented in a branded gift box; hand wash recommended

This is not a round plate with a cat drawn on it; the whole dish takes the shape, Harekutani's habit of turning a Kutani colour into a form rather than a background. In blue, the cat wears its markings the way a calico does, irregular patches across the body and tail rather than a single wash of colour. In green, the colour lives only in the tail, banded in horizontal stripes, while the face and body stay in plain white porcelain. In red, fine flecks scatter across the body and down the tail, a light speckling that gets picked up and turned over mid dinner once someone notices the shape is the whole point.

Harekutani took shape in 2017 under Kitano Toujudou, a Kutani wholesaler in Nomi City, Ishikawa, trading since 1972, working within Kutani yaki, a porcelain tradition over 360 years old. Cats hold a particular fondness in Japan too, kept by shopfronts and homes alike as a sign of welcome and good fortune, and this brings that same familiar figure to the table rather than the doorway.

At 26cm long, there is a proper spread of plate here, enough for cheese and biscuits, a run of canapes, or a fillet of fish with something green alongside.