Divine Cloud Tea Snack Dish

This lovely handmade dessert and snack dish takes a typical Chinese utilitarian form and elevates it with a rich, colorful glaze on a beautiful cloud motif. The tradition of pairing tea with snacks dates back to the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907 CE). The variety of Chinese tea snacks is vast, ranging from dried and fresh fruits, to roasted seeds and nuts, to finely crafted pastries. In Chinese culture, there is an importance given to the sense of ceremony in daily life. This is observable in the elaborate but purposeful rituals involved in brewing tea. Along with the process, the tools involved in these daily rituals are of utmost importance. Therefore, vessels used for the simple act  of serving snacks alongside tea need to be not only practical but also timelessly beautiful—reflecting the user’s personal aesthetic tastes and appreciation for the craftsmanship of the time.
 The "handled basket" design dates to the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BCE) and has been adapted for various types of containers made from a variety of materials throughout Chinese history. It remains a quintessential Chinese form in ceramics, especially in tea ware. The cloud pattern that adorns this piece is one of the most iconic motifs in traditional Chinese design. "Auspicious clouds" symbolize good fortune, happiness, and a longing to recognize the simple beauty of nature, as well as representing the divine. The cloud motif played an important role in Buddhist imagery that spread across the silk road during the Three Kingdoms, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties. 
 These divine cloud tea snack dishes are hand crafted by a skilled artisan in Jingdezhen and combine a high-quality glazed ceramic dish in a variety of rich colors with a simple wooden handle to adapt this ancient Chinese form and style for use in the modern household.