There is only one lavatory containing two cubicles for the lower house’s 73 women to use. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read ...

A quiet Japanese town with a population of less than 20,000, Arita has been responsible for one of Japan’s most prestigious exports since the 17th century. Arita’s obsession with porcelain ware, ...

Japan first began producing porcelain during the early 17th century in Hizen Province, now the city of Arita in Saga Prefecture. Techniques from Korea were used with aesthetics influenced by Chinese ...

The history of ceramics in Japan is intrinsically intertwined with cultural exchange. Like green tea, soba and udon noodles, the birthplace of Japanese ceramics is Kyushu, a historical hub of ...

Ko-Imari, or Old Imari, is celebrated for its refined shapes and its elaborate and brilliant hand-painted patterns. Exported for some 300 years, it was long treasured by the European nobility. This ...

Today’s items from our readers offer a good look at how quality, rarity and hand-crafting affect the value of collectibles. The general categories of glass and china have seen significant price ...

Q This set belonged to my mother when she was a child living in Vancouver, British Columbia, around the 1930s. The only markings show “Made in Japan.” The plate is 5 inches across, the saucer 3 inches ...

For the first time since it began receiving the Macdonald porcelain collection in 2004, Toronto’s Gardiner Museum has made space to show all of it, more than 300 pieces, by arranging new displays in ...

This year is ostensibly the 400th anniversary of Arita-yaki (Arita ware). An Arita city webpage tells us it was in 1616 that a forcibly relocated Korean farmer, Yi Sam-pyeong, discovered the white ...