The Tetsubin: A Japanese Tea Kettle

The tea kettle reigns over all other pieces in the tea set arrangement. It is the vessel that holds and warms the water for the tea, and, that when poured, brings the delightful drink to life. It is a source of warmth; a symbol of comfort and class. However, in the Japanese world of tea drinking, the kettle was solely a class symbol. A kettle called the tetsubin was never an original tea time fixture. However the arrival of the tesubin changed Japanese tea drinking forever.

Before the Tetsubin, tea was drunk as a part of the Japanese Tea Ceremony. It was a ritual reserved for the social elite, the very rich. The ceremony required porcelain teas sets, as well as ceramic and bronze tea sets, which were too expensive for the common man. The ceremony was formal and hampered by rules that held meaning, but again, were for the social elite. In the 1600's, the "literati" of Japanese society decided to take tea drinking to the masses. Over the next century, the tea ceremony was bypassed. A more casual form of tea drinking emerged, with no rules, just the presence of family, friends, and good tea.

As the masses began to pick up on the new casual tea, a more inexpensive pot was needed, one that could be afforded at any social level. A cast iron kettle was created. It was inexpensive, and soon became a fixture in the Japanese home as the masses embraced their tea drinking. The tetsubin became more decorative in the 1800's as its popularity merged into the upper classes. The belief that tea was tastier when water was boiled from a cast iron pot circulated throughout the country. The presence of a tetsubin at tea was one of popularity, but also better taste.

The tetsubin's popularity has waned over the years. At the turn of the millennium, the tea kettle was more of a decorative piece in the home. Few tetsubins are in use, in homes where the belief in cast iron flavor still abounds. The presence of a tetsubin, however is still invokes taste, but also recognition of the family and history. It is also an antique piece that shows the happiness of the drinker. A home with a tetsubin piece is one without snobbery; another type of status symbol. This is a far cry from the poor man's kettle it was created to be.