A hand-painted porcelain wind chime from Arita — Japan's first porcelain town, where Lee Sam-pyeong fired the country's first hakuji (white porcelain) in 1616. The dome bell is washed with white porcelain glaze and drawn over with sazanka (山茶花 / Camellia sasanqua) blossoms in pure cobalt-blue 染付 line — the foundational sometsuke technique called sen-byou, where the flowers exist as outline only, with no fill. Small openwork (sukashi) cutouts mark each blossom's heart, letting the air through and softening the chime's tone.
Camellia blooms in late autumn through early winter — the iconic flower of Japanese tea ceremony (chabana) — making this the seasonal complement to spring's sakura motif.
Specifications
Form: Porcelain bon-furin (盆風鈴) — dome / bell shape
Pattern: 手描山茶花 (Tegaki Sazanka) — hand-painted camellia; series-named "白磁の有田里 みやび" on the maker's tanzaku
Hardware: Navy braided cord with amber faceted bead at the crown; white porcelain inner ringer
Tanzaku (短冊): Beige paper, handwritten with the maker's series name
Dimensions: φ7.5 cm × 6 cm (about 3" × 2.4")
Weight: ~90 g (~3.2 oz)
Maker code: NT-733690 · JAN 4965217733690
Origin: 有田町, 佐賀県 (Arita town, Saga Prefecture)
Packaging: Individual rigid blue gift box, supplier-included (also includes the maker's Hizen ceramics history pamphlet)
Made by 西日本陶器 (Nishi-Nihon Toki) / Arita-yaki in Saga Prefecture, Japan, curated by ZenKiln
About Arita ware, sometsuke, and sen-byou
According to the maker's included pamphlet, Arita porcelain began in 元和二 (1616), when Lee Sam-pyeong (李参平), a Korean potter who emigrated to north Kyushu, discovered porcelain stone at Izumiyama (泉山, Saga Prefecture) and fired Japan's first porcelain at the Kamishirakawa Tengudani kiln. The earliest Arita work was 染付 (sometsuke) — cobalt-blue painting under a clear glaze on a white porcelain body. The most restrained version of that tradition is 線描 (sen-byou): outline only, no fill, no shading. It's the technique that lets the white porcelain breathe — and it's what gives this piece its airy, contemporary feel despite its 17th-century lineage.
Use & gifting
Tea ceremony (sadō) practitioners and chanoyu students — camellia is the chabana for autumn-winter chaji
Anniversary, housewarming, birthday — quietly elegant ceremonial gift
Father's Day — masculine restrained palette
Lovers of japandi, wabi-sabi, and minimalist Japanese aesthetics
Window, eave, or covered porch — the sukashi cutouts give the chime a softer, more diffuse tone than solid-bodied bells
Care
Hang in a sheltered location: a covered porch, eave, or indoors near an open window
Bring inside before storms or freezing temperatures — porcelain is hard but not impact-proof
Wipe gently with a soft, dry cloth; avoid harsh chemicals
Store off-season in the original gift box
Reference conversions
7.5 cm ≈ 3.0"
6 cm ≈ 2.4"
90 g ≈ 3.2 oz
About ZenKiln — A Japan-based curator connecting international collectors with Japan's artisan ceramic tradition. We work closely with the kilns, workshops, and makers featured in our shop — each one disclosed in our About section — and hand-pack every piece in Japan for safe delivery worldwide.
📦 Ships from Japan, hand-packed for safe delivery.
