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context: ceramics > six ancient kilns
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a 13th C Seto pot, with dribbled ash-glaze |
Seto
The largest pottery centre in Japan, setomono, 'seto ware', can be used as a synonym for 'ceramics' in Japan. Toshiro (13th C, real name Kato Shirazayemon), the 'Father of Pottery', was dissatisfied with Japanese ceramics, and spent six yrs in China. He returned in 1229 to set up in Seto, imitating celadon. These classy wares were aimed at and bought by the nobility. They had their own distinctive glazes, often of a weak brown or straw colour, and they used underglazes.