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JAPAN GUIDE: Seto-Shi and Seto-mono

"Seto-mono" in Japanese means "things from Seto" or "things made in Seto." Seto is a city about an hour to the north of Okazaki, famous throughout Japan for its pottery and ceramics, to the point where the name has become a synonym for them – "seto-mono" has come to mean simply "ceramics".

The town became famous for its pottery because of a combination of two factors: natural resources (an abundance of silica-clay) and technology (imported by Toshiro from Korea in the twelfth or thirteenth century). Other areas of Japan also developed these crafts, but it is without doubt Seto which has enjoyed the greatest commercial and artistic success over time.

A group of students from Yamasa visited Setoshi last Sunday to see some of the local crafts and to make some seto-mono. Creations were... just that. Animals seemed to be the theme of the day, and what started out as simple bowls, cups and a thing that resembled a cross between a log cabin and a raft, ended up as a pig, a dog, a container for a cobra and a cross between a log cabin and a raft.

All the above was made by hand, but the other feature of the afternoon was to make a cup on the wheel with ample assistance from the local master-craftsman. He was so good, in fact, that you just put your hands on the clay and made the item – or rather, as each person made a mess, he miraculously stopped it from spinning out of control so that everyone managed to produce a very presentable cup/vase/container for alcohol (Declan...).

A fun afternoon – and a good way to get rid of stress. Discovery tour programs will also be going to Seto.

Also see the photos in the Student Photos section.

To go there yourself:

Prices: entrance fee: 1,500 yen. Includes all the clay you can use. If you want to take any pieces with you, it costs 100 yen per 100 grams to have the items fired and glazed. You can then collect them later or they can be sent to you for an extra charge (reasonably cheap). This service can take up to one month. (Included when this tour is included in a Discovery program).

Getting there: Take the Aikan Tetsudo from Okazaki station to Seto-shi (1 hour, 750 yen), then change to the Meitetsu Seto Line to Owari-Seto (5 mins, 160 yen).