A BRIEF LOOK AT GONG FU TEA IN THE EARLY QING PERIOD IN CHINA AND ITS EFFECT ON THE WORLD PARTICULARLY EUROPE…………………………
Before we go into Gong Fu Tea in Early Qing in China, starting in Early Kangxi, let’s take a quick look at Gong Fu Tea’s effect on tea drinking in the West particularly Europe.
The simple tea plant, a variety of camellia, has had a profound influence on the health, customs and social habits of Europeans. This is remarkable when one considers that tea was unknown in the West until the 17th century; it was officially imported from Asia to Europe for the first time in 1610.
The Portuguese were the first European traders to go to China in the 16th century. They brought tea back to Portugal along with their spices and porcelain cargoes. However, it was the Dutch who formed the habit of drinking tea in Europe.
Whatever tea was exported to Holland in the first quarter of the 17th century must have been scarce, and not enough to warrant the ordering of special teapots. T. Volker, who translate the records of the Dutch East India Company(VOC) makes this interpretation from the VOC record of 1624: “From the above it will also be observed that among the wares sent to Holland, there was not a single object related to the drinking of tea”(Volker. p.33).
In the second quarter of the 17th century this was to change. Teacups were ordered by the VOC in 1626. Pots were mentioned for the first time in the VOC requirements of 1639, as translated by Volker in which was mentioned 200 tea-pots with covers and handles were ordered.
However, internal wars were brewing in China, and the continuous supply of any item to export was becoming compromised. In 1644, the Ming Dynasty fell, and and after 1645 the shortage of Chinese export porcelain became evident. Coincident with this, the export of Chinese tea also had to be limited. These shortages were not alleviated until some time after 1683 when the Manchu emperor Kangxi united the whole of China(after Taiwan was retaken). Peace returned to China and exports once again became a reality.
The disruption of the tea supply in China meant that whatever tea and pots were available to Europeans at that time came primarily from Japan and also the trade hubs in Nanyang like Malacca and Batavia (now Palembang) where Chinese traders especially Fujians plied their trades in tea, teapots and tea wares among others. The 1660s and 1670s could have represented a complete“lost decades” for the export of Chinese tea and teapots because of internal wars if not for the enterprising Chinese plying the maritime Silk route.(including Japan where there were Fujian traders like Zheng Zhi Long, the father of Zheng Cheng Gong, who used to do business in Hirado, Japan in the 1620s).
Meanwhile in China during this turbulent period an extraordinary experiment was taking place in Shunzhi’s reign: an old-hand of Zisha Pots named Hui Meng Chen, who had made Zisha Pots earlier in Late Ming, was experimenting with a new Zisha clay called Zhuni to make his Pots. The result of his work was the Small Meng Chen Zhuni Pot, the first and never before produced by any Potter. The new invention or creation by Hui Meng Chen began to influenced tea ware making and it in turn sparked off a renaissance in Chinese tea culture in Early Kangxi, in the form of the emergence of a new concept of tea-drinking called Gong Fu Tea. This new Chinese tea culture is a final product of a evolutionary process starting from when tea was discovered 4737 years ago to when it reached a matured, sophisticated and complete form. This form of tea drinking was(still is) a method involving the ritual preparation and presentation of tea to produce the highest quality tea by incorporating the highest compatibility between tea and tea utensils, namely the tea leaves brewed in the Small Meng Chen Zhuni Pot and served in the Roushen teacups to produce the best color, flavor and fragrant tea.
Sadly for the study and research of Gong Fu Tea and Yixing teapots,the Transition Period particularly the Shunzhi to Early Kangxi period was very lacking in archaeological or documented sources of information(in fact almost none) so much so most Western or Chinese tea culture scholars/historians choose to avoid this period of history or at the very best “just mention a few words about it”
Yes Ladies and Gentlemen, the Transition Period especially the Shunzhi to Early Kangxi period, was the most unknown, most avoided area of the study and research of Chinese tea culture or Zisha Hu not to mention Jingdezhen porcelain, that historians of Chinese tea culture particularly in Gong Fu Tea and Zisha Hu, dreaded to venture into but not Ren Fu Collection because this period in history is Ren Fu Collection’s ”forte”: we have a lot of information about Gong Fu Tea in this period.
Yes, Ladies and Gentlemen, while either none was archaeologically excavated or almost all of the Chinese porcelain and Yixing teapots of that period were not documented or did not survive until today to tell their stories, Ren Fu Collection’s Chinese porcelain and Zisha Hus and most important of all Gong Fu tea wares were protected and stored in the safest place possible during this tumultuous time in Chinese history. “Where?”we hear you asked,“Ladies and Gentlemen: in tombs and graves, found in the Nanyang, which we excavated and made two earth-shattering archaeological discoveries, among lots and lots of other discoveries.”
And following study and research into Ren Fu Collection’s huge archaeological trove, we also discovered there was a possible parallel development of tea culture between China and Europe, though in different fashion:
Firstly Zisha Pots started to arrive in Europe as Chinese export wares in the late 17th century( Kangxi’s reign) as evident in documented Zisha Pots in European museum collections and ship-wrecked Zisha Pots found in the Oosterland ship-wreck off Cape Town, South Africa dated 1697( Kangxi 35th year reign).
In China in Early Kangxi, Gong Fu Tea emerged to take Yixing teapots making and tea-drinking to a higher level after the first appearance of the Small Meng Chen Zhuni Pot in Shunzhi.
Then around 1710, Johann Friedrich Bottger, a German Potter, saw and was aware of Yixing teapots’ huge popularity made possible by the very attractive allure of the Gong Fu tea wares, namely beautiful tea sets of Zhuni Pot, ceramic teacups and dishes, developed a rival “Bottger Ware”, a dark red stoneware which first officially sold in 1710 and later imitated and manufactured by others(though the Dutch and Elers brothers of England also laid claims to the invention of the red stoneware in the 1690s). Imitated teacups and dishes also followed in Europe, only that this time tea wares were made to suit European taste and with their own materials. One of the European taste is teacups with handle which was invented by the same inventor of the rival “Bottger Ware”, Johann Bottger, in 1707..
In China during Kangxi’s reign, copies of Meng Chen Zhuni Hus started to appear with Gong Fu tea wares and these grew increasingly in numbers through Yongzheng’s and until Qian Long’s reign when the small Meng Chen Zhuni Pots were mass-produced.
During Qian Long’s reign, European Chinoiserie craze reached its peak while in China during Qian Long’s reign coinciding with the peak of Chinoiserie craze in Europe, there was great euphoria in the Chinese tea culture and tea-drinking world brought about by the Meng Chen Small Zhuni Hus and Gong Fu Tea as indicated by the Meng Chen Zhuni Pots commemorating Qian Long’s 8th and 13th Years Reign and the mass-production of Meng Chen Zhuni Copies and other Gong Fu tea wares like Roushen teacups, dishes(tea boats), burners(stoves) and water boilers(kettles). Hence, this period saw the Golden Age of Gong Fu Tea. Strangely only Meng Chen Zhuni Pots were mass-produced with Gong Fu tea wares indicating a strong correlation between Meng Chen Zhuni Pots and Gong Fu Tea which we now know, based on Ren Fu Collection’s abundant archaeological proofs, as a “cause and effect” relationship meaning the invention of the Small Meng Chen Zhuni Pot caused the creation of Gong Fu Tea and Gong Fu Tea was not a solitary or isolated creation but was linked to the invention of the Small Zhuni Hu by Hui Meng Chen( if Gong Fu Tea was a solitary, independent creation not linked to the Small Meng Chen Zhuni Pot, then it would not have happened soon after the invention of the Small Meng Chen Zhuni Pot but could have happened anytime, in Late Ming or Middle/Late Qing without the Meng Chen Zhuni Pot). Sadly soon after Gong Fu Tea reached its peak in Qian Long’s reign, disruptions to its production due to foreign invasions began which culminated in the Opium Wars in Daoguang.
Yes, Qian Long’s reign was the Golden Age of Gong Fu Tea as archaeologically proven by Ren Fu Collection’s excavated Gong Fu tea wares (refer to Ren Fu Collection’s book titled, “Saving Old Purple-Sand Clay Teapots” and see our posted Chart of Pre-Daoguang Gong Fu tea wares and posted pictures of Meng Chen Zhuni Copies and Gong Fu tea wares) for this period witnessed a new universal trend in tea-drinking involving the ritual preparation and presentation of tea, a new tea-drinking concept called Gong Fu Tea and Gong Fu Tea was not just a new concept of drinking tea involving art and ritual but also involving the spiritual uplifting experience called Cha Dao.
Yes, Gong Fu Tea which Ren Fu Collection has proven archaeologically to be a tea art and Cha Dao, was the greatest tea culture in the world, greater than the Korean tea ceremony, greater than the Japanese Chado and greater than any other tea cultures in the world at that time.(some people say Gong Fu Tea is still the greatest tea culture in the world). And what took the world especially China so long to noticed the importance the part played by the legendary Small Meng Chen Zhuni Pot in the creation of Gong Fu Tea after the Pot’s invention in Shunzhi by the greatest Master Potter Hui Meng Chen that was in Qian Long’s reign, are evident by the sea-salvaged Meng Chen Pots, unearthed Meng Chen Zhuni Pots in Nanyang and mainland China but most critical and important of all in Ren Fu Collection’s huge archaeologically trove of excavated Gong Fu Meng Chen Zhuni Pots and tea wares. Yes Ladies and Gentlemen, Hui Meng Chen’s greatest creation, the revolutionary Small Zhuni Pot in Shunzhi, was not noticed, applauded and celebrated until in Qian Long’s reign when commemoration Meng Chen Qian Long 8th Year and 13rd Year Zhuni Pots appeared and we now know why the famous Late Ming Zisha Hu historian Zhou Gai Qi’s omitted in putting Hui Meng Chen’s name in his book, “An Account of YangXian Teapots” was because the book was written before the invention of the revolutionary Small Zhuni Pots by Hui Meng Chen in Shunzhi, the effects of the wars in the Transition Period and earlier Zisha Pots made by Hui Meng Chen in Late Ming did not impress Zho Gao Qi.
Note:
Our work on Ren Fu Collection’s archaeological discoveries is unfinished because of the huge archaeological trove and the lack of working staff( only Tony Ren alone does the work). We hope that after contacting the 100 scholars and professors in universities and other Chinese tea culture study and research units, they will take over if not at least share some of the burden of study and research of this most central and important part of Chinese tea culture based on archaeological material and proofs never before seen or available anywhere else in the world. In other words, all the archaeological Gong Fu Tea materials and data in the world(except one in ZhangPu County, China) are in Ren Fu Collection’s hand.
Lastly please note that Ren Fu Collection did not claim that Hui Meng Chen created Gong Fu Tea but we claim, based on archaeological proofs, that Hui Meng Chen’s invention of the Small Zhuni Pot if not sparked off, at least safe to say inspired Gong Fu Tea.
简述中国清初功夫茶及其对世界特别是对欧洲的影响………………………………
在我们进入中国清初功夫茶之前，从康熙初期开始，让我们快速了解一下功夫茶对西方尤其是欧洲饮茶的影响。
简单的茶树，多种茶花，对欧洲人的健康、风俗和社会习惯产生了深远的影响。当人们认为直到 17 世纪茶在西方才为人所知时，这是非常了不起的。它于 1610 年首次从亚洲正式进口到欧洲。
葡萄牙人是 16 世纪第一批前往中国的欧洲商人。他们将茶叶连同香料和瓷器货物一起带回葡萄牙。然而，正是荷兰人在欧洲形成了喝茶的习惯。
17 世纪前 25 年出口到荷兰的任何茶叶都一定是稀缺的，不足以保证订购特殊的茶壶。翻译荷兰东印度公司（VOC）记录的 T. Volker 从 1624 年的 VOC 记录中做出这样的解释：“从上面也可以看出，在运往荷兰的货物中，没有一件物品与喝茶有关”(Volker. p.33)。
在 17 世纪下半叶，这种情况发生了变化。 1626 年，VOC 订购了茶杯。在 1639 年的 VOC 要求中首次提到了茶杯，沃尔克在其中提到，订购了 200 个带盖和把手的茶壶。
然而，中国正在酝酿内战，任何出口商品的持续供应都受到了损害。 1644年，明朝灭亡，1645年后，中国出口瓷器的短缺变得明显。与此同时，中国茶叶的出口也不得不受到限制。直到 1683 年满清皇帝康熙统一全中国（收复台湾之后），这些短缺才得到缓解。和平回归中国，出口再次成为现实。
中国茶叶供应的中断意味着当时欧洲人可以获得的任何茶叶和壶主要来自日本以及马六甲和巴达维亚（现为巨港）等南洋贸易中心，中国商人尤其是福建人从事茶叶贸易、茶壶和茶具等。如果不是有进取心的中国人在海上丝绸之路上航行，1660年代和1670年代可能是中国茶叶和茶壶出口因内战而失去的一个完整的“十年”。（包括在日本，有像郑志龙等福建商人，郑成功的父亲，1620年代曾在日本平户做生意）。
与此同时，在中国这个动荡的时期，顺治时期正在进行一项非同寻常的实验：一位名叫惠孟臣的紫砂壶老手，明末早期制作紫砂壶，他正在试验一种名为朱泥的新紫砂粘土来制作紫砂壶。他的工作成果是发明自己的小孟臣朱泥壶，这是第一个也是以前从未由任何陶工制作过的壶。惠孟臣的新发明或创造开始影响茶具制作，进而引发了康熙早期中国茶文化的复兴，出现了一种称为功夫茶的新饮茶概念。这种新的中国茶文化是一个进化过程的最终产物，从4737年前茶叶被发现到成熟、复杂和完整的形态。这种饮茶方式过去（现在）是一种涉及仪式制备和呈现茶叶的方法，通过将茶叶和茶具的兼容性结合在一起，生产出最高质量的茶，即在小孟臣朱泥壶中酿造的茶叶，并在若深茶杯中饮用，以生产出最佳颜色、味道和香味的茶。
遗憾的是，对于工夫茶和宜兴茶壶的研究和学习，过渡时期特别是顺治至康熙初期非常缺乏考古或文献资料（实际上几乎没有），以至于大多数西方或中国茶文化学者/历史学家选择避开这段历史，或者最好“只提几句”。
是的，女士们，先生们，过渡时期，尤其是顺治至康熙初期，是中国茶文化或紫砂壶最不为人知、最避讳的领域，更不用说景德镇瓷器了，尤其是中国茶文化史家工夫茶和紫砂壶，不敢涉足任富收藏，因为这个历史时期是任富收藏的“强项”：关于这个时期的工夫茶，我们有很多资料。
是的，女士们，先生们，要么没有考古发掘，要么几乎所有那个时期的中国瓷器和宜兴茶壶都没有记载，或者没有幸存下来直到今天，为了讲述他们的故事，任富收藏的中国瓷器和紫砂壶，以及所有最重要的工夫茶具，在中国历史上这个动荡的时期，都被保护并存放在最安全的地方。 “在哪里？”我们听到你问，“女士们，先生们：在南洋发现的古代陵墓和坟墓中，我们发掘并取得了两个惊天动地的考古发现，还有很多其他的发现。”
而在对任富收藏的藏品中有庞大的考古宝库进行考察研究后，我们还发现，中欧茶文化有可能平行发展，但方式不同：
首先，紫砂壶在 17 世纪后期（康熙年间）作为中国出口商品开始传入欧洲，欧洲博物馆收藏的紫砂壶和在南非开普敦附近的奥斯特兰海难中发现的沉船紫砂壶都可以证明这一点1697年（康熙三十五年）。
康熙初期的中国，继顺治小孟臣朱泥壶首次出现后，工夫茶的出现将宜兴茶壶的制作和饮茶推向了一个更高的层次。
1710年左右，德国陶艺家约翰·弗里德里希·博特格（Johann Friedrich Bottger）看到并意识到宜兴茶壶因工夫茶具的迷人魅力而大受欢迎，即精美的朱泥壶茶具、陶瓷茶杯和餐具，竞争对手“Bottger Ware”，一种深红色的炻器，于 1710 年首次正式销售，后来被其他人模仿和制造（尽管英国的荷兰和 Elers 兄弟也声称在 1690 年代发明了红色炻器）。仿制的茶杯和餐具也在欧洲出现，只是这次的茶具是根据欧洲人的口味和自己的材料制作的。欧洲口味之一是带把手的茶杯，它是由竞争对手“Bottger Ware”的同一位发明者 Johann Bottger 在 1707 年发明的。
康熙年间的中国，随着工夫茶具的出现，蒙臣朱泥壶的复制品开始出现，到雍正时期，数量越来越多，直到乾隆年间，小孟臣朱泥壶开始大量生产。
乾隆年间，欧洲的中国风达到了顶峰，而在中国，恰逢欧洲中国风的高峰，孟辰小竹泥给中国茶文化和饮茶世界带来了极大的欣喜。以纪念乾隆八、十三年的孟臣竹泥壶及大量生产的孟臣竹泥本及柔神茶杯、碟（茶舟）、炉具（炉具）和开水器（水壶）。等工夫茶具为标志的茶具和功夫茶。因此，这一时期见证了功夫茶的黄金时代。奇怪的是，只有孟臣朱泥壶与工夫茶具大量生产，这表明孟臣朱泥壶与工夫茶之间存在很强的相关性，根据任富收藏的藏品丰富的考古证据，我们现在知道，这是一种“因果”关系意思是小孟臣朱泥壶的发明导致了工夫茶的创造，而工夫茶并不是一个单独的或孤立的创作，而是与慧孟臣发明的小朱泥壶有关（如果工夫茶是一个独立的创作，与小孟臣朱泥壶没有联系，那么它不会在小孟臣朱泥壶发明后不久发生，而是可能在明末或清中/清末的任何时候发生，没有孟臣朱泥壶）。可悲的是，在乾隆年间功夫茶达到顶峰后不久，由于外国入侵开始中断生产，最终导致了道光的鸦片战争。
是的，乾隆朝是功夫茶的黄金时代，由任富收藏出土的功夫茶具考古证明（参考任富收藏的《拯救老紫砂泥茶壶》一书，见我们发布的前图表——道光时期以前工夫茶具，张贴孟臣朱泥壶、工夫茶具图片）这一时期见证了茶的仪式准备和呈现的饮茶新趋势，一种称为工夫的新饮茶概念茶与工夫茶不仅是一种全新的饮茶概念，涉及艺术和仪式，还涉及一种精神振奋的体验，即茶道。
是的，任富收藏的工夫茶经考古证明是一种茶艺术，而茶道是世界上最伟大的茶文化，比韩国茶道、日本茶道、比任何其他茶文化都要伟大。当时的世界。（有人说功夫茶仍然是世界上最伟大的茶文化）。是什么让世界特别在中国这么长时间才注意到，传说中的小孟臣朱泥壶在古人、在顺治发明壶后、在工夫茶创作中所起的重要作用中，在乾隆年间的陶艺大师惠孟臣最流行，在南洋和中国大陆出土的海中打捞的孟臣壶和出土的孟臣款朱泥壶中都可以看出，但在任富收藏的大量考古发掘中最为关键和重要一个，这是一个庞大的考古宝库，其中包括出土的工夫孟臣朱泥壶和茶具等。
是的，女士们，先生们，惠孟臣最伟大的创造，顺治时期革命性的小朱泥壶，直到乾隆年间，才出现了纪念性孟臣款乾隆八年和十三年朱泥壶，才被人们注意到、鼓掌和庆祝，现在我们知道为什么了晚明著名紫砂壶史学家周高启在《阳羡茗壶系》一书中省略了惠孟臣的名字，因为该书是在顺治时期惠孟臣发明革命小朱泥壶之前写成的。过渡时期的战乱，以及明末惠孟臣所制作的紫砂壶，并没有给周高起留下深刻印象。
笔记：
由于考古宝藏庞大，工作人员不足（只有任富一个人做这项工作），我们对任富收藏的考古发现工作尚未完成。我们希望在接触大学和其他中国茶文化研究和研究单位的100位学者和教授后，他们将承担（至少分担）中国茶文化这一最核心和最重要部分的研究和学习的负担。基于考古材料和以前从未见过或在世界其他任何地方获得的证据。也就是说，世界上所有的考古工夫茶资料和资料（中国漳浦县除外）都在任富收藏之手。
最后请注意，任富收藏并没有声称惠孟臣创造了功夫茶，但我们声称，根据考古证据，惠孟臣发明的小朱泥壶如果没有引发，至少可以肯定地说是启发了功夫茶。
