中屋

■Ko-Imariyaki

In the late 1500s, Hideyoshi Toyotomi was the
Shougun(political ruler of Japan) at that　time and invaded Korea. When his armed forces withdrew from Korea, Naoshige Nabeshima who was the feudal lord of Saga clan brought the Korea potters in Kyusyu. This is a start of the technical introduction of the porcelain production in Japan.
Eight years later, white clay quarry was discovered at Izumiyama(Izumi mountain, Arita) in Hizen(Saga Prefecture, Kyusyu) and the porcelain was produced for the first time in Japan.
In the early 1600s, almost at the same time as the beginning of Edobakufu, the history　of the pottery in Japan begun to change to the surprising white porcelain.
In Arita where is the birth place of Japanese porcelain, the porcelain of the high quality was　produced as the special product of the Nabeshima clan. Because these porcelain were shipped to other Japanese cities and elsewhere in Asia and Europe from the Imari port, Aritayaki is thus called "Imariyaki" in foreign countries and the classical Imariyaki made until Edo period is also called "Ko-Imari" as " Old Imari".

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