This guide will define, in general terms, what Is, and what Is Not, Satsuma. 

We have been collecting, researching, studying, buying and selling fine Satsuma since 1971.  Our guides will assist you in identifying and evaluating Satsuma wares.  In the marketplace you will find Satsuma articles of all kinds: vases, bowls, koro, kogo, buttons, hatpins, belts, watch fobs, cups, saucers, plates, teapots and figurines. 

You will also find, especially on eBay, a multitude of Satsuma-like and imitation Satsuma wares that have neither artistic merit nor monetary value.

What is Satsuma?

"Satsuma" is the term for a type of Japanese earthenware (pottery) characterized by a transparent but slightly yellow tinged and finely crackled glaze over a cream to buff to brownish colored pottery body.

All genuine Satsuma has this composition.

Most Satsuma is decorated in gilt and polychrome enamels, but some is totally undecorated.  Much Satsuma is signed or marked in some manner, but much is not.

By far most of the ware listed on eBay and on Internet sites as "Satsuma" is not true Satsuma, and indeed some of it bears no similarity whatsoever to genuine Satsuma.

The earliest Satsuma ware dates to the 17th Century and was a plain, undecorated ware intended for use primarily in the tea ceremony.  While these early wares are quite rare, the most intensive collector and connoisseur interest lies in the Satsuma items made from the middle of the 19th Century through the end of Meiji period in 1912.  Satsuma began to acquire its elaborate gilding and enameling beginning in the late 18th Century.

Characteristics of all Satsuma

First and foremost, Satsuma is always earthenware, and never porcelain. 

Earthenware is opaque pottery made from relatively coarse clay, frequently thrown on a pottery wheel but not necessarily, that is fired in a kiln at low temperatures.  The body is heavy and dense but soft and porous.  The body clay of all genuine Satsuma ranges from cream to buff to brownish colored.

The two photos below illustrate the body color, glaze color and the fine network of crazing that characterizes all Satsuma ware.

The above example is by Yabu Meizan (1853-1934) and is so signed in gilt.  Note that the crackling in the yellowish glaze is very fine and relatively uniform.  The crackled glaze and the cream color pottery underneath, and the gilding, impart a warm, soft glow to fine Satsuma.

The example above is the base of a vase ca. 1900 signed "Kinkozan zo."

In some instances the article may be so extensively gilded and enameled that it is difficult to see the underlying body of the earthenware and the color and crackling of the glaze.  Usually the inside lip of a vase or vessel or the base or reverse of an item will have an undecorated portion where the cream color of the earthenware and glaze is visible.

The gilding and enameling on genuine Meiji period (1868-1912) Satsuma is very finely executed and is characterized by a distinctive slightly raised texture.

It is not uncommon to find Satsuma vases, cups and other vessels that have been used for their intended purpose of holding liquids such as tea, water or sake.  Because earthenware, even when glazed, can be slightly porous, such vessels may exhibit some discoloration due to having been used as receptacles for sake, tea or water, however in some instances the discoloration may be due to long term changes in the chemical content of the clay. 

The collector should avoid any item that shows these discolorations, as they significantly detract from the aesthetics and monetary value of the item.  Likewise, extensive and heavy wear to the gilt renders Satsuma worthless.

The photo below depicts a six inch vase signed by Meizan and is an example from very early in his career.  It was personally purchased from Meizan by the grandfather of an Austrian gentlemen of title and is in our inventory on consignment from the nobleman.

The photo below is of a five inch koro (incense burner) signed "Kinkozan."

The photo below illustrates the fine honeycomb piercing in the lid and body of the koro.  The piercing allows diffusion of the incense. 

Below, an authentic Kinkozan signature: on the left edge is impressed "Kinkozan zo." To the right, in gilt, "Kinkozan."

For a scholarly, intelligent overview of Satsuma wares and makers, and to view photos of some very fine examples of Satsuma, obtain a copy of the book Satsuma Masterpieces from the world's important collections by Louis Lawrence, Dauphin Publishing, London, 1991, ISBN 1-872357-04-0.

This is the only worthwhile book written to date on the subject of Satsuma.  Your public library may have a copy available.  If you have any interest in Satsuma, you must obtain obtain a copy of this book.  You may largely disregard everything else you have read or heard about Satsuma.

The appearance, fine decoration and touch of fine genuine Satsuma made before 1910 or so is unmistakeable. 

Satsuma-type wares of the mid-20th Century:

You may be surprised to know that a great deal of very attractive Satsuma was made in the 1950's and into the very early 1960's.  The finest wares of that period were made by the Koshida factory.  We toured the Koshida factory in 1957 and purchased some fine wares.  Not remotely as fine as the wares of 1890-1910 but nevertheless nice.  At around the same time we toured the Hozan factory in Yokohama.

This 1950's ware is now being misrepresented on eBay and other selling venues as "Meiji Period," "Circa 1900," and other such nonsense.  We have never seen any Satsuma with a Koshida signature that dates from the Meiji period, yet almost every piece we see listed on eBay is misdescribed as being of the Meiji peiod.  The Meiji period ended in 1912.

Your own knowledge and experience are your best guides in buying any kind of art or antiques.  Be eager to research and learn.  Be very slow to buy.

We consider the 1950's Satsuma wares of the Koshida factory to be generally very attractive and well worth collecting by collectors of modest means.

As we stated above, the gilding and enameling on genuine Meiji period (1868-1912) Satsuma is very finely executed and is characterized by a distinctive slightly raised texture.  The gilding and enameling on Satsuma from the 1950's is flat and not nearly as elaborate and finely executed.  After you have handled a few examples of each, you will never again be deceived.  For example foot rim borders on vases or bowls from the mid-20th century are usually flat gilded crosshatches, while those from ca. 1900 or earlier are luxuriously textured with detailed motifs.

What is not Satsuma?

If you have an item made of porcelain it is emphatically not Satsuma.

If you have a tea set or a vase or a cup and saucer that is thin and translucent, it is not Satsuma.  There are no Satsuma wares made of porcelain.  There are porcelain items decorated in a Satsuma style of decor, but such wares are not Satsuma.

Unlike earthenware, porcelain is a fine translucent ware made of fine clay and fired in a kiln at very high temperatures to produce a hard, white, in some cases almost glass-like body.  Your fine china that you use for Thanksgiving dinner is porcelain.  A porcelain bowl may even have a higher pitched "ring" when struck, but if you strike an earthenware bowl you are more likely to hear a low pitched "thud."

All Satsuma is earthenware.  It is never porcelain.

If you have an item with a dark or opaque glaze that is green, brown, red or any other dark color, your item is not Satsuma.  If your item has a colored glaze with very large crackles in the glaze, your item is not Satsuma.  All Satsuma has a crackled glaze, but not all ceramics with a crackle glaze are Satsuma.  Much Korean and Asian ware has a crackle glaze and yet is not remotely related to Satsuma.

A major characteristic of Satsuma is its fineness and elegance.  If an item is gross, clumsy, crude, or simply ugly, it is probably not true Satsuma. 

Use a common sense approach to any work of art: if your first impression is that it is a hideous piece of junk, assume that your assessment is correct until it can be proven otherwise.

Because of the popularity of fine Satsuma in the late 19th and very early 20th Centuries, many ceramic houses all over Japan, from the 1910's through the 1980's sought to imitate Satsuma designs in order to capitalize on the popularity.  By far most of the so-called Satsuma in the marketplace today falls into this category of Satsuma-type or Satsuma-like ware. 

Some of these wares are so grotesque in design that they appear to be almost a cruel parody of the genuine article.

The photo below illustrates a cheap mass-produced cup and saucer that, being porcelain, is not Satsuma.  The decoration is crude and the colors are garish and startling.  This might be of interest to a collector of cups and saucers, or to a collector of mass produced Asian ceramics, but it would have no appeal to a Satsuma collector.

Likewise, the cheap mass produced vase illustrated below, with its crudely applied decor, is also emphatically not Satsuma.  It is Japanese, and it may be collectible to some unsophisticated buyers, but it cannot be termed Satsuma.  It, and similar wares, could be correctly termed "Satsuma-type." 

Such wares are sought by some collectors, and the ware does find a market among some collectors, especially on eBay where there are buyers for anything, whether it is a fine painting or a potato chip with the image of Jay Leno.  For some a Timex will do; for others nothing less than a Patek Philippe will suffice.

Such crude types of ware do not compare favorably, either aesthetically or monetarily, to genuine Satsuma.  It is junk.  Please do not waste your resources accumulating this meretricious junk or anything similar.  The world is full of worthwhile collectibles of many kinds.  Focus your attention on the finest collectibles you can afford.

You can easily find dozens of "Satsuma-type" items by doing an eBay search on the word "Satsuma" and you can find illustrations of them in many of the poorly researched guides to Asian antiques found in your local bookstore. 

One of the best known of these guide books is so full of errors, misprints and misinformation as to be worthless.  The guide mis-attributes signatures and makes other gross errors and, because of careless editing and proof reading, these errors have been perpetuated through subsequent editions of the book, and thus the errors have become part of the popular folklore.

One will often find deceptive eBay sellers offering items described as "Kinkozan style" or "Kinkozan type," or even "Kinkozan era."  Nonsense.

There is no such thing as Kinkozan style, Kinkozan era, or Kinkozan type! 

Kinkozan was a specific manufactory in Kyoto operated by the successive generations of the family and only their signed wares can be referred to as Kinkozan.  If an item is not signed Kinkozan, it is not Kinkozan!

Unscrupulous eBay sellers use the keyword "Kinkozan" so that their item will appear in a word search and attract more attention from unsophisticated buyers.  Many such unscrupulous sellers also use prohibited "keyword spamming" in auction titles to draw attention to their listings.  Do a word search now on "Kinkozan" and see how many obviously non-Kinkozan items have "Kinkozan" in the title.

An example of such deceptive "spam" would be a title such as "Satsuma Kinkozan Yabu Meizan Ryozan Kozan."  This would be the equivalent of offering a wristwatch as "Tiffany Cartier Piaget Rolex Omega."  Such keyword spamming is prohibited on eBay however crooked sellers continue the practice because it works: it gets your attention.

To see current examples of such forbidden spamming, you have only to look at the other eBay listings to the right of this guide.  Every day there are crooked sellers who list "Satsuma Imari Kinkozan Kutani" or other such keywords merely to get you to view their auction. 

There is an eBay seller who frequently includes the phrase "It reminds us of Kinkozan" in each of his listings so that they will appear in word search results!  Another seller consistently injects "Kinkozan?" into his titles.

Some of the very best, and some of the very worst Satsuma ever made was by the Kinkozan manufactory, which closed in 1927.  Therefore, a Kinkozan signature alone is no guarantee of quality: one must consider the overall aesthetic merits of the piece, as is necessary in any work of art of any kind. 

Unfortunately, most of the ware made by Kinkozan just prior to their closing is of exceedingly poor quality.

Not all ware bearing a Kinkozan signature is Satsuma.  Some of the ware produced by the factory just prior to the closing in 1927 was unrelated to Satsuma and is simply factory made art pottery. 

Some of the end time ware had pseudo-Art Deco-style designs and semi-abstract decor. At first glance these pieces appear to be Art Deco, but upon consideration one realizes that the designs are not true Art Deco but simply a Japanese factory designer's curious idea of Art Deco style.  Even in the 1920's Paris was a long way from Kyoto.

Some of these Art Deco-style items can be interesting in a Deco collection, although their artistic merit is very minimal and their monetary value is virtually nil and will likely remain so for a long time. 

These items do appear on eBay from time to time and can usually be bought for $10-$30 each.  They tend to be rather large, sometimes 10 inches or more in diameter.  Most of the items are signed with an oval red Kinkozan factory stamp in Roman alphabet, but a few are signed in Kanji and therefore may escape recognition.  Because of the presence of the Kinkozan factory stamp many sellers describe them as "Satsuma" even though they are not and in fact they bear no resemblance to the finest Satsuma wares.

Other Kinkozan ware of the immediate pre-factory closing period had crude raised slip decorations and other surface textural elements that characterize the worst of Japanese ceramics of that period.  Those items also frequently appear on eBay.

Markings on Satsuma wares

Much of the finest Satsuma is signed by the artist or artists who made or participated in the making of the item, or sometimes one will find pieces with the name of the manufactory, studio or workshop where the item was made. 

However, a great deal of very fine Satsuma is unsigned. 

Much Satsuma is marked as shown in this photo.  Please note that this signature is from a cheap mass produced item and is shown only to clearly illustrate how the Japanese characters "Satsu Ma" are written.  

This signature in the photo below is from an older piece of very poor workmanship and reads, from top to bottom and from right to left: "Dai Nippon Satsuma yaki Gyokuzan," Great Japan Satsuma ware [made by] Gyokuzan.  Gyokuzan is not held in high esteem by collectors and work from that studio is very common.  Another very common, and not highly regarded, studio is that of Hotoda.

Note in both examples the mark of the cross within a circle, which is the mon or family crest of the Shimazu family, the princes of Satsuma province which gave its name to Satsuma ware.  In true Japanese armorials, the crest is blue.

The absence or presence of the Shimazu mon does not indicate or prove anything whatsoever and it certainly does not indicate that the item bearing it was the property of a princely or royal person.  It also means absolutely nothing in terms of dating the item.

The crest sometimes appears on non-Satsuma wares that simply imitate Satsuma, therefore this crest does not "prove" that an item is Satsuma.  Think of it as nothing more than a sort of shorthand for possible Satsuma ware, but do not accept its presence as a guarantee of anything.

Please do not refer to any signature or marking of any kind as a "chop" mark.  Also the word mon refers to the crest only.  The mon is not the signature.

If you encounter a commercially mass-produced piece of Satsuma from approximately the late 1940's through the 1970's, you may find the word "Satsuma" printed on the base, sometimes with "Japan" or "Made in Japan."  Absolutely no Satsuma printed with the word Satsuma or with any words in Roman alphabet was made before the 20th Century. 

All genuine Satsuma was made in Japan

All genuine Satsuma was made in Japan.  If you have an item marked "China" or "Made in China," or "Decorated in Hong Kong," it is emphatically not Satsuma.  It is junk.  Much of this ware has been made in China since about 1980 and is continuing to be exported by the boatload.  eBay is overwhelmed by the profusion of Chinese fakes and reproductions of all kinds.

This Chinese fake Satsuma is readily available in Asian gift shops and there is usually a large quantity of it on eBay.  The easiest way of illustrating this worthless junk is for you to to a word search on "Satsuma egg."  There is usually at least one somewhere on eBay. 

Why anyone would want one of these crude eggs is baffling.  All are made-in-China junk dating from approximately 1975 or so to now.  This same ware appears in bowls, plates, chargers, vases (some of them quite large) and in other forms, some of which are distinctly un-Japanese.  A few of these items are marked "Royal Satsuma," however that term also can appear on some slightly better quality items made in Japan in the 1950's.

Summary

You now know how to identify an item as "Satsuma" or "Not Satsuma."

Satsuma is always earthenware with a cream to buff to brownish colored body with a transparent yellowish crackle glaze with a fine network of crazing. 

You may now rule out most of the trash on eBay and the Internet that is listed by ignorant, crooked sellers.  Ignorant people are harmless until they have something to sell and then they become very dangerous because their only interest lies in transferring money from your wallet to theirs.

Please do not ask us to identify, appraise, or comment on Satsuma items in your possession.  We regret that we do not have time to reply to inquiries.