WhereGifu (Mino)
SinceLate 1500s
KindStoneware
The story
Shino was born in the Mino kilns of Gifu in the late 1500s, and is often described as Japan’s first white-glazed pottery. The glaze is thick, made from feldspar, and looks like soft snow over the clay.
Where the glaze is thin the clay shows through in blushes of red, and tiny pinholes dot the surface. It is a quiet, tactile ware, loved for tea and for sake.
What to look for
- A thick, milky white glaze
- Tiny pinholes in the surface
- Blushes of red where the fire touched
