Warikōdai Chawan: The Tea Bowl That Broke the Rules

Quietly seated in a glass case at the Ebara Hatakeyama Museum in the leafy hills of Shirokanedai, Tokyo, sits a small ceramic bowl that, at first glance, seems modest, almost rough. Turn it over, however, and you will find the feature that has captivated tea masters for centuries: a foot ring sliced cleanly in the shape of a cross. This is the Warikōdai Chawan, a tea bowl made on the Korean Peninsula during the Joseon dynasty in the 16th century, and one of the most distinctive treasures of the Hatakeyama collection.

Designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan in 2017, this bowl embodies a fascinating story that bridges Korean ritual ceramics, the spiritual evolution of Japanese tea culture, and the discerning eye of a 20th-century industrialist who saw beauty where others saw eccentricity.

What Is a Warikōdai Chawan?

The name "warikōdai" (割高台) literally means "split foot ring." On most ceramic bowls, the foot ring (kōdai) is a smooth circular base that allows the vessel to sit stably on a flat surface. On a warikōdai bowl, however, that ring has been deliberately cut, most often in a cross or X pattern, transforming an ordinary structural element into a striking design feature.

The Hatakeyama bowl is a representative example of this rare form. Made of stoneware in the hardened, slightly milky white style known as katade (堅手), it has the subdued, textured quality that Japanese tea masters loved. The body is firmly thrown but slightly distorted, the glaze pools and thins in unpredictable ways, and the deeply sliced foot ring gives the whole piece a sense of bold sculptural intention.

From Ritual Vessel to Tea Treasure

So why split the foot ring at all? The most widely accepted theory traces the warikōdai form back to ritual vessels used in ancestral ceremonies on the Korean Peninsula. Many such vessels traditionally had foot rings cut in similar fashion, possibly to symbolize purity or to set them apart from everyday tableware.

Whether the Joseon-period potters who made these pieces ever imagined them being filled with whisked green tea is another matter. By the late 16th century, however, Japanese tea masters had begun to admire Korean ceramics with intense passion. As Japanese tea moved away from elaborate Chinese-style displays and toward the rustic, restrained ideal of wabi-cha championed by Sen no Rikyū, the unpretentious workmanship and unexpected forms of Korean bowls fitted the new aesthetic perfectly.

Warikōdai bowls in particular appealed to the warrior elite of the Momoyama period. There is something powerful and unhesitating about the cuts in the foot, a quality that resonated with samurai sensibilities. The Taishō Meiki Kan, a celebrated early-20th-century catalogue of famous tea utensils, lists nine renowned warikōdai bowls that once belonged to the Tokugawa shogunate, the Sakai, Matsudaira, and other great daimyō houses.

Why It Became an Important Cultural Property

When the Japanese government designated this bowl an Important Cultural Property in 2017, it formally acknowledged something tea connoisseurs had long appreciated: the Hatakeyama warikōdai is one of the finest surviving examples of its type. Several factors contribute to its significance.

The bowl is in remarkable condition for an object that is roughly 450 years old. Its proportions strike a difficult balance between solidity and grace. The contrast between the relatively conventional upper body and the dramatic split foot creates visual tension, almost as if the maker was deliberately challenging the viewer's expectations. Above all, it carries an impeccable provenance, having passed through the hands of significant tea collectors before entering the museum's holdings.

Curators at Kyoto National Museum have described the bowl as being of "extraordinary form" (hakaku), a word that might be translated as "rule-breaking" or "without precedent." It is precisely this quality that made the bowl so attractive to its most famous modern owner.

The Eye of Hatakeyama Sokuō

The man who brought this bowl to Tokyo was Hatakeyama Issei (1881–1971), better known by his tea name Sokuō. Born in Kanazawa to a family that traced its lineage to the medieval Hatakeyama warlords of Noto Province, he graduated at the top of his mechanical engineering class at the Tokyo Imperial University and went on to found the Ebara Corporation, today one of Japan's leading pump manufacturers.

While building his industrial empire, Sokuō devoted himself with equal seriousness to the tea ceremony and to art collecting. He took inspiration from the great modern tea masters who came before him, including Masuda Don'ō and Hara Sankei. But Sokuō also had his own eye, one that delighted in pieces other collectors might have hesitated to buy. As one Kyoto National Museum essay observed, alongside the indisputable masterpieces in his collection, he sought out "individualistic works of unconventional form" such as this very warikōdai bowl. To Sokuō, its boldness was not a flaw but its greatest virtue.

In 1964, he opened the Hatakeyama Memorial Museum on the grounds of his Tokyo residence to share his collection with the public. The institution reopened in October 2024 as the Ebara Hatakeyama Museum following an extensive renovation, with display space roughly tripled and the original main building lovingly preserved.

Highlights for Visitors

Seeing the Warikōdai Chawan in person is a quiet but rewarding experience. Because tea bowls are traditionally appreciated from multiple angles, the museum displays them in cases that allow visitors to view the body, lip, interior, and crucially, the foot ring. Take time to circle the case slowly. Notice how the cross-cut foot ring catches the light, how the glaze gathers more thickly in some areas than others, and how the slight asymmetry of the body suggests the warmth of human hands rather than mechanical perfection.

The bowl is shown only during certain seasonal exhibitions, typically those that focus on tea ceremony utensils, so it is wise to check the museum's exhibition schedule before your visit. When it is on display, it is often paired with other masterpieces from the Hatakeyama collection, allowing you to see how Sokuō envisioned individual works coming together in a complete tea gathering.

Beyond the Bowl: Exploring the Museum

The Ebara Hatakeyama Museum holds approximately 1,300 works, including six National Treasures and 33 Important Cultural Properties, ranging from Japanese, Chinese, and Korean ceramics to calligraphy, paintings, lacquerware, and Noh costumes from the Maeda family of Kaga.

The grounds themselves are part of the experience. Five historic teahouses stand within the garden, four of which were designated tangible cultural properties of Minato Ward. The site has long carried symbolic weight: it was once an estate of the Shimazu lords of Satsuma, later the residence of Meiji-era statesman Terashima Munenori, where the Meiji emperor himself once attended a Noh performance. A stone monument still marks the imperial visit.

Around the Museum

Shirokanedai is one of Tokyo's most refined neighborhoods, with quiet streets lined by embassies and stylish cafes. After your museum visit, you might walk to the nearby Institute for Nature Study (Shizen Kyōikuen), a sprawling natural park that preserves landscapes once part of the same Edo-period estate. Antique shops and the elegant Happō-en garden are also within easy reach. The area is well served by Takanawadai Station on the Toei Asakusa Line and Shirokanedai Station on the Toei Mita and Tokyo Metro Namboku lines, and the museum is roughly twenty minutes on foot from Shinagawa Station, a major Shinkansen hub.

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Q&A

QWhere can I see the Warikōdai Chawan?
AIt is housed at the Ebara Hatakeyama Museum in Shirokanedai, Minato Ward, Tokyo. The bowl is displayed periodically as part of seasonal exhibitions, so please check the museum's website before visiting to confirm whether it is currently on view.
QWhat does "warikōdai" actually mean?
A"Warikōdai" (割高台) literally means "split foot ring." It refers to ceramic bowls in which the circular foot ring at the base has been deliberately cut, most often in a cross or X pattern, as a distinctive design feature.
QWhy is a Korean tea bowl considered an Important Cultural Property of Japan?
AKorean ceramics, broadly known in Japan as kōrai-jawan, became central to the development of the wabi-style Japanese tea ceremony from the late Muromachi period onward. Bowls such as this one have been treasured in Japan for centuries, transmitted through important collections, and recognized as cultural assets of considerable historical and artistic significance.
QWho was Hatakeyama Sokuō?
AHatakeyama Issei (1881–1971), known by his tea name Sokuō, was the founder of the Ebara Corporation and one of the leading modern tea masters and collectors of his era. He opened the Hatakeyama Memorial Museum in 1964 to share his collection with the public.
QHow do I reach the museum?
AThe closest stations are Takanawadai (Toei Asakusa Line, about a six-minute walk) and Shirokanedai (Toei Mita and Tokyo Metro Namboku Lines, about a ten-minute walk). It is also approximately twenty minutes on foot from Shinagawa Station.

Basic Information

Name Warikōdai Chawan (Tea Bowl with Split Foot Ring)
Period Joseon dynasty, 16th century
Origin Korean Peninsula
Material Stoneware (katade type)
Cultural Property Designation Important Cultural Property of Japan (designated 2017)
Owner Ebara Hatakeyama Memorial Cultural Foundation
Housed at Ebara Hatakeyama Museum (formerly Hatakeyama Memorial Museum)
Address 2-20-12 Shirokanedai, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-0071
Nearest Stations Takanawadai Station (Toei Asakusa Line); Shirokanedai Station (Toei Mita Line / Tokyo Metro Namboku Line)
Closed Mondays (open if Monday is a public holiday, then closed the following Tuesday), exhibition changeover periods, year-end and New Year holidays

References

Ebara Hatakeyama Museum — Official Website
https://www.hatakeyama-museum.org/
Ebara Hatakeyama Museum — Opening Commemorative Exhibition I
https://www.hatakeyama-museum.org/exhibition/000059.html
Ebara Hatakeyama Museum — About
https://www.hatakeyama-museum.org/about/
Wikipedia (Japanese) — Ebara Hatakeyama Museum
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/荏原_畠山美術館
Wikipedia (Japanese) — Kōrai-jawan (Korean Tea Bowls)
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/高麗茶碗
Kyoto National Museum — Special Exhibition: Masterpieces of the Hatakeyama Memorial Museum
https://www.kyohaku.go.jp/jp/special/tenrankai/hatakeyama_2021.html
Cultural Heritage Online — Warikōdai Chawan (related work, Honma Museum)
https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/277666

Last verified: 2026.05.01