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definitions

raku

[rah-koo]
noun
  1. a thick-walled, rough, dark lead-glazed Japanese earthenware used in the tea ceremony.

Origin of raku

1870–75; < Japanese raku(-yaki) “pleasure” glaze, originated by Chōjirō of Kyoto, who was given the seal-stamp with the character “pleasure” from Hideyoshi as an artisan-household designation
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for raku

Historical Examples of raku

  • Raku ware, so called from the inscribed mark Raku (happiness), consisted chiefly of tea-bowls.

  • The raku faience owed much of its popularity to the patronage of the tea clubs.

  • It is equally hard to understand why raku should have been preferred to porcelain for this special ceremonial.

    The Ceramic Art

    Jennie J. Young

  • These bowls were sometimes imported from Siam and other countries, and vessels of raku were made for the same purpose.

    The Ceramic Art

    Jennie J. Young

  • This raku was a ware introduced by a Corean called Ameya, about the beginning of the sixteenth century.

    The Ceramic Art

    Jennie J. Young