The remarkable technique of decorating bowls with tree leaves was perfectioned at the Jizhou kilns, Yongzhen, Jiangxi province. The potters specifically selected mulberry leaves because of their high content in zinc and iron, which after firing resulted in the desired light beige to caramel-brown colour. Since real leaves were used, each bowl that was created in this manner is completely unique.

Jizhou-ware ‘leaf bowls’ also fitted in the Buddhist aesthetics, and it has been suggested that encounters between the kilns and the sophisticated culture of Zen monks and scholars have occurred. For further reading, see Shenzhen Museum, Jizhou Kiln Porcelain from the Song and Yuan Dynasties, 2012, pp. 184-187.

Bowls of the present type are rare, because they were produced exclusively at the Jizhou kilns. It is very seldom that a Jizhou ware bowl appears on the market with a well-achieved leaf design, moreover one in outstanding condition.