Bizen tea caddy

This is a Bizen tea caddy by the first Fujiwara Rakuzan, an artist who was active from the Meiji through the early Showa period and created many renowned pieces, including tea utensils. Despite the hardships of the time, the first Rakuzan utilized ingenuity to create beautiful "Blue Bizen" (Ao-Bizen) using the salt-firing technique, and this piece captures that sophisticated, understated aesthetic with its pale blue-gray surface. While it is a salt-fired piece with a pale blue-gray hue, the kiln firing process has created tasteful variations in color, offering the delightful qualities typical of pottery, such as a thin layer of natural glaze and subtle shifts in texture. The shape, which resembles a stacked rice cake (kasane-mochi), is charming, yet the entire piece is perfectly symmetrical, demonstrating the exceptionally superb technical skill of the first Rakuzan. Box identified by the second Rakuzan (shiho-zan style)　*Please note that no shifuku (pouch) is included.
Diameter 6.3cm × Diameter 6.3cm × Height 7.3cm The first Fujiwara Rakuzan was born in 1876. In 1898, he was adopted into the Fujiwara family and learned the potter's wheel from Kuso Hisamoto at the Obi Kiln during his youth. He was most skilled at making tea bowls, kyusu (teapots), and hohin, and also created detailed decorative pieces in colored Bizen. Many of his works feature what is known as "salt-fired blue." He passed away in February 1930.