An ash-glazed bowl, fired at the Wakuta kilns during the Ryukyu Kingdom period. A teabowl fired in Tsuboya at the end of the Ryukyu Kingdom. Known as a Makai in Okinawan language, its Canton-bowl-shaped body is coated with a glazing technique known locally as figaki. The glaze fires to a subdued grey-green tone, its quiet surface accentuating the interplay between the straight lines of the body and the gentle curvature of the rim.

The Wakuta kilns developed under strong influence from the folk kilns of southern China, while also incorporating techniques introduced by Korean potters brought to Ryukyu via Satsuma. As a result, they became a distinctive centre where multiple currents of East Asian ceramic culture converged. Before their eventual integration into the Tsuboya kilns, the Wakuta potters produced a remarkable variety of wares. The present bowl evokes the cosmopolitan character of the Ryukyu Kingdom at a time when it stood as a vital crossroads of maritime East Asia.

Apart from a small chip to the footrim, there are no notable defects, and the overall condition is generally good.