How to identify the quality of teapot

1. If the color is overly bright or shiny, it may be a warning sign. Authentic Zisha clay has a natural, muted tone; bright colors often indicate added chemicals.

2. A real Zisha teapot should feel heavy in your hand. Counterfeit ones are often lighter and thinner, lacking the substantial weight of genuine pieces.

3. Avoid pots with unusual or unnatural colors, such as bright green or extremely red. These are usually the result of chemical additives.

4. Be cautious of teapots that look perfect before being used. A genuine Zisha pot may appear dull at first, but its beauty develops over time through use. If it looks too flawless, it might be fake.

5. Look for visible original ore particles. Fake teapots often have particles that are obscured or wrapped in material, making them hard to see even under magnification (20-30x). Real Zisha should show clear, natural particle structure.

6. Authentic Zisha contains impurities, which are normal and not just iron. These impurities often appear as small black specks, unevenly distributed across the surface. Genuine teapots may look unattractive when first fired, while those that look too clean and uniform may be suspicious.

7. A real Zisha teapot should have a grainy texture. The raw ore particles are clearly visible and evenly spread, giving a natural look. In contrast, sand-adjusted teapots tend to have a more artificial, uniform appearance, with particles that seem "floating" on the surface.

8. Tap the teapot gently and listen to the sound. A genuine Zisha teapot produces a deep, hollow “boring” sound, similar to a ceramic jar. If it sounds like porcelain, it’s likely fake—often made with chemical materials or improperly fired.

9. Breathability alone isn’t enough to determine authenticity. Some fake teapots can still be porous, so don’t rely solely on this test.

Identifying a real Zisha teapot requires attention to detail. For antique pieces, two common fakes include artificially aging the surface with shoe polish or acid, or mixing white clay with cement to create a faux aged effect. For modern fakes, they often involve engraving famous seals or imitating well-known styles.

To spot a genuine Zisha teapot, observe the color. Real Zisha tends to have a rich, purple hue that becomes brighter with age. New teapots, on the other hand, often look dull and lack luster. Even if they shine, it might be due to wax polishing. From a text perspective, old Zisha teapots typically feature neat Yangwen calligraphy. If a new teapot uses Yangwen, the style may look stiff or inconsistent. If it's an old pot with new engravings, the text will likely be Yinwen, which is less common and more subtle.