Set of 4 Small Plates "Prosperity"

Mamezara are versatile plates used for serving small side dishes, condiments, or sweets. They are often used to serve salt on the dining table, and are sometimes called "teshio-zara" (hand salt plates). They are also frequently used as soy sauce dishes or pickle plates. Adding mamezara to the dining table and decorating the table with them is a uniquely Japanese way of enjoying tableware. Despite being traditional Japanese tableware, they surprisingly complement Western table settings as well, allowing for serving small side dishes, condiments, or sweets. The shaping of the material involves stacking plaster molds with convex and concave pairs and using a forming method called "pressure casting," where slurry, the base material, is poured into the mold under pressure. The slurry that fills the mold hardens due to the absorbent properties of the plaster, and the formed piece is removed from the mold at this stage. This method is mainly suitable for shaping irregularly shaped vessels. Afterward, the piece is dried and trimmed to refine its shape. In porcelain production, the final shaping is done through trimming, which is a critical step requiring skilled craftsmanship. The completed piece is then bisque-fired at 920 degrees Celsius for two days, glazed with a unique glaze applied individually with a brush, and reduction-fired at 1300 degrees Celsius over three days. Finally, overglaze decoration is applied, and the piece is fired again at 800 degrees Celsius, completing the process.