Shi Huang and Shi Hong have been extremely hyped in recent years, to the point of being somewhat mythologized.

The current “Shi Huang” is not the same as the “Shi Huang clay” from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Shi Huang clay from those times refers to what we now call Xiao Hong (Little Red) clay; it's just called differently.

(Shi Huang)

Shi Huang belongs to the category of young clay deposits, distributed sporadically. Its raw material is scattered within layers of young clay, formed over long periods of weathering into a natural clay deposit. It is found in clay, shale, and other argillaceous rocks rich in pyrite.

(Shi Huang)

Shi Huang typically appears in the form of egg-shaped, round, cylindrical, or grape-like nodules of varying sizes, with the egg shape being most representative. It has a shell, mantle, and core. The outer shell is very hard, like iron, and yellowish in color. Its core resembles an egg yolk, hence the name Shi Huang.

(Shi Hong)

The shell and core tend to be purplish-red, known as “Shi Hong.”

Shi Huang and Shi Hong are produced in small quantities, contain a lot of sand, and have low plasticity. They are not suitable for forming alone but are often ground into slurry and mixed with other materials to improve their quality.

Purple clay Teapots made purely from Shi Huang are difficult to form and have a very low success rate.

Some purple clay materials, when fired, result in dull colors lacking luster. In such cases, a bit of Shi Huang is added, making it considered a “treasure” in traditional purple clay materials. When some purple clay materials are mixed with natural Shi Huang, they can be fired at lower temperatures, enhancing their color and gloss.

Shi Huang and Shi Hong, due to their high iron content, turn a reddish-iron color after firing and are often used as coloring agents. In the past, because kiln temperatures were difficult to control, Shi Huang would often turn black after high-temperature firing and was therefore considered waste and discarded.

According to our predecessors, Mr. Gu Jingzhou and Mr. Wang Yinchun had different views on “Shi Huang.” Mr. Wang believed that Shi Huang was a type of red clay, while Mr. Gu argued that it wasn't red clay since it turned dark purple when fired. In fact, the core of “Shi Huang,” which is yellowish, turns red when fired, while the darker red “Shi Hong” turns black. The nature of purple clay is “as splendid as the stars,” and neither of them was wrong; it was just a joke played by nature on them.

Many people claim that their Shi Huang comes from Yellow Dragon Mountain, but there are no young clay deposits there, so there is no Shi Hong or Shi Huang. If a seller says this, it could mean they don't understand the materials, or they're misleading you. However, there is a type of Shi Hong clay in Yellow Dragon Mountain, which is different from the local Shi Hong. There are only a few areas in Yixing where Shi Hong and Shi Huang can be found, mainly in Zhu (red) clay mines such as Zhaozhuang, Small Coal Mine, Xiangshan, and Chuanbu, as Zhu clay also originates from young clay deposits.

The current Shi Huang is a natural coloring clay deposit or additive. Shi Hong and Shi Huang were produced in very limited quantities in the past, and few people stockpiled them as additives for clay preparation. Moreover, high-quality Zhu clay from the area is already scarce, so how much of the sporadically distributed Shi Hong and Shi Huang can there be? Where do all the Shi Hong and Shi Huang in the market come from?

Some are blended, and many come from elsewhere, with these materials generally being of average quality. While local resources of Shi Huang and Shi Hong are fewer than Zhu clay, this does not necessarily make them better. Rarity doesn't equate to excellence, and we should judge them objectively and rationally.