Kutani Square Plate Set of 5 — Hakuhō Kiln Yoshidaya Wild Grape 13.7 cm

Kutani Yoshidaya-Fū "Nobudō" Wild-Grape Square Plate Set of 5 — Hakuhō Kiln, side 13.7 cm (4.5号)

A set of five hand-painted Kutani square plates from 九谷 博峰窯 (Hakuhō Kiln), Ishikawa Prefecture. The pattern is named 吉田屋野ぶどう (Yoshidaya nobudō / "Yoshidaya-style wild grape") — a modern reinterpretation of one of Kutani's most beloved 19th-century idioms.

The Yoshidaya idiom

The original Yoshidaya kiln (active in the 1820s–1860s during Kutani's revival period) is remembered above all for its 青手 aote painting: a deliberately restricted palette of yellow, green, purple, and turquoise-blue, with iron-black line drawing — and pointedly NO iron-red. The aote ground covers the entire surface, leaving no white space, so the painting reads like a small enamel garden. Hakuhō Kiln's contemporary Yoshidaya-fū series carries this discipline forward: each plate here has a textured yellow ground (the speckled kiji-no-jiyū effect of Yoshidaya yellow earthenware), two large turquoise grape leaves with fine iron-black veining, a bare branch line in iron-black, and a small turquoise / cobalt / black grape-berry cluster — the wild grape (野ぶどう / nobudō) of a late-summer hedgerow.

The form

A square plate (角皿 / kakuzara) with mild upturned corners, sized 4.5号 — a Japanese catalogue size label that translates to roughly 13.7 cm per side (4.5号 is NOT itself a centimetre measurement; the actual side is what we list here). Sold as a fixed set of five matching plates. The 4.5号 size fits comfortably in the mukōzuke (向付) role of a kaiseki place setting, as a small individual share plate, or as a wagashi (Japanese sweets) tray.

Body & finish

The body is earthenware (陶器, NOT porcelain). The Yoshidaya tradition specifically uses earthenware because the heavy yellow / green / purple aote palette adheres better to the porous body than to porcelain — the warm tōki body is part of why these pieces feel as solid as they look. The reverse of each plate is left unglazed where it shows the warm terracotta-orange clay, with the kiln 底款 reading 九谷 博峰窯 brushed on (visible in the bottom photo).

Care

Microwave and dishwasher use is not specified. As with most hand-painted Yoshidaya-fū aote pieces we recommend hand-wash only — warm water, soft cloth, mild detergent — to protect the overglaze enamel and the iron-black line work. Because each plate is painted by hand the grape leaves and berry clusters vary very slightly piece to piece across the set; this is part of how the Yoshidaya tradition is made, not a defect.

• Made by Hakuho Kiln / Kutani-yaki in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, curated by ZenKiln.