Yes, there were quite a large number of polished teapots from Yixing in private collectors' hands. These pots were made during the late 18th and 19th centuries. They were sent to Thailand to be mechanically polished. It puzzled me as to why they are sent to Thailand for the job. I supposed Thailand had the know-how and expertise in polishing job. Some referred them as teapots for export market.
I believe not all the teapots were made for export as some of these teapots had the imperial seals of dragons and engravings such as Yongjeng (2nd Qing emperor) on them. Most of them however had the mark of Gong Ju (Imperial Court) at the bottom. Yet there were some made for the King of Thailand for his birthday and the pots carried the animal symbol (zodiac sign) of the king. These pots are precious in collectors' eyes.
The unique characteristic features of these pots, apart from a very glossy shine on the outside, the handle is usually made from precious metal. The fragile rim of the cover/lid is protected using precious metal such as gold or silver. The knob on the cover and the tip of the sprout are also cladded with metal. Some teapots may also have metal covering at the bottom or foot of the pot. For bigger teapots, metal such as copper alloys is used to wrap around the fragile part of the teapots.
The shapes of the pots vary from cylinder shape to globular shape and small pots are also made for kung-fu tea drinking.
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| Polished teapots of the 19th century |
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