Xi Shi Pots (西施壶)

Xi Shi Pot (西施壶) is a very traditional teapot design. It is said that the earliest Xi Shi pot was made during the Ming dynasty by Xu Youchuen. The records by a Japanese researcher/author made reference to the pot as Xi Shi's breast as the pot was supposedly shaped like xi Shi's breast.

Three Xi Shi pots by Zhou Juefang

Who is Xi Shi? Why were potters modelled a teapot design on her breasts?

Xi Shi (西施) was one of the renowned Four Beauties of ancient China. She was said to have lived during the end of Spring and Autumn Period in Zhuji, the capital of the ancient State of Yue. Her name was Shi Yiguang (施夷光).

Xi Shi's beauty was said to be so extreme that while leaning over a balcony to look at the fish in the pond, the fish would be so dazzled that they forgot to swim and sank away from the surface. This description serves as the first two characters of the Chinese idiom 沉魚落雁, 閉月羞花 which is used to compliment someone's beauty.

Story of Xi Shi (Source:Wiki)

King Goujian of Yue (one of dozens of kingdoms) was once imprisoned by King Fuchai of Wu (another kingdom) after a defeat in war, and Yue later became a tributary state to Wu. Secretly planning his revenge, Goujian's minister Wen Zhong suggested training beautiful women and offering them to Fuchai as a tribute (knowing Fuchai could not resist beautiful women). His other minister, Fan Li, found Xi Shi and gave her to Fuchai in 490 BC.

Bewitched by the beauty and kindness of Xi Shi, Fuchai forgot all about his state affairs and at her instigation, killed his best advisor, the great general Wu Zixu. Fuchai even built Guanwa Palace (Palace of Beautiful Women) in an imperial park on the slope of Lingyan Hill, about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) west of Suzhou. The strength of Wu dwindled, and in 473 BC Goujian launched his strike and put the Wu army to full rout. King Fuchai lamented that he should have listened to Wu Zixu, and then committed suicide.

In the legend, after the fall of Wu, Fan Li retired from his ministerial post and lived with Xi Shi on a fishing boat, roaming like fairies in the misty wilderness of Taihu Lake, and no one saw them ever again.

One cannot neglect the influence of this ancient beauty Xi Shi as numerous movies and TV drama series had been produced in the past and even potters made teapots in remembrance of her (it's a pity they only remembered her breasts rather than her beauty and remarkable life ).

A black Xi Shi pot made in the 80s