Mashiko pottery 益子焼

It is generally agreed upon that Mashiko ware originated towards the end of the Edo period, in the year 1853 (Kaei 6). It was then that Keisaburo Otsuka, having learned the art of pottery in the city of Kasama, Ibaraki, traveled from what is now the town of Motegi, Tochigi to the town of Mashiko, where he discovered potter’s clay and first lit his kiln.The pottery industry continued to develop through the Meiji period, taking advantage of the bounties of the land to achieve Kanto-wide distribution of its wares. Around the same time, teapots decorated with simple landscape paintings were