Tea Ceremony
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Water Jar, Named "Shiba no Iori (Grass Hut)"
Shigaraki ware, Azuchi-Momoyama–Edo period, 16th–17th century (Important Cultural Property, Gift of Mr. Hirota Matsushige)Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 14
July 14, 2026 (Tue) - October 4, 2026 (Sun)Tea drinking and its role in society changed over time. In the 12th century, Zen monks introduced a new kind of tea drinking from China: green tea was ground into a powder and mixed with hot water. Monks drank this tea as a medicine and to stay awake during meditation.
Before long, the samurai also began to drink tea and competed for prizes in blind tasting competitions. In the 14th and 15th centuries, the elite samurai who ruled Japan focused on the aesthetics of tea drinking. They collected valuable Chinese works like paintings and tea bowls, displaying and using them during tea gatherings.
A century later, Sen no Rikyū (1522–91) established the foundations of the tea ceremony. When serving tea, he used valuable Chinese works together with simple utensils. He also stressed humility and the beauty of imperfection. Elite samurai practiced his style and its variations as a social, aesthetic, and spiritual pursuit.
| Designation | Name | Creation/ Excavation/ Provenance |
Period | Acquisition/ Ownership/ Accession Number |
CMT | ||
| Highlight | Part of Volume 5 and the Preface of Collection of Japanese Poems Ancient and Modern (One of the Oie Fragments) | By Fujiwara no Shunzei (1114–1204) | Heian period, 12th century | B-12-9 | On exhibit from August 25, 2026 | ||
| Ridged Tea Kettle | Tenmyō ware | Muromachi period, 16th century | E-13345 | ||||
| Highlight | Important Cultural Property | Water Jar, Named "Shiba no Iori (Grass Hut)" | Shigaraki ware | Azuchi-Momoyama–Edo period, 16th–17th century | Gift of Mr. Hirota Matsushige, G-5307 | ||
| Highlight | Tea Bowl, Named "Kimura" | Korea | Joseon dynasty, 16th–17th century | Gift of Mr. Hirota Matsushige, TG-2705 | |||
| Dish with an Upturned Rim | Bizen ware | Edo period, 17th century | G-5775 |