Ryumonji ware jar with samehada glaze, Black Satsuma Ware

One of the techniques representative of the Ryumonji Kiln is the samehada or ‘shark skin’ glazing. This technique takes advantage of the shrinking of glaze when fired under high temperatures, creating fine crimps all over the vessel without cracking. This texture is considered to be fine quality and it is a difficult texture to achieve, only possible when fired at a certain section of the ascending kiln.