Over the past few hundred years, some works of purple clay have been passed down and innovated through generations, becoming world-renowned classics. The “Duiqiu Teapot” is one of the most typical examples.

In the Hall of Famous Works at the Yixing Ceramic Museum, three “Duiqiu” Teapots are displayed: the “Daheng Duiqiu,” the “You Ting Duiqiu,” and the “Shouzhen Duiqiu.” These three differently styled “Duiqiu” teapots were crafted by three renowned artisans in the history of purple clay, representing three different periods and styles.

The “Daheng Duiqiu” was created by Shao Daheng from the Village of Shangyuan (now the Zisha Village in Dingshu) during the Jiaqing and Daoguang eras of the Qing Dynasty. The work is dignified and full of vitality. Daheng was a man with high aspirations and an unyielding spirit, unafraid of authority and not willing to cater to popular tastes.

There is a folk legend about him: Daheng's teapots were so precious that they were hard to obtain even for a thousand pieces of gold. A maid was about to be beaten to death for breaking a teapot cherished by a noble. To save the maid, Daheng brought a basket filled with over a dozen of his teapots, presented them to the noble without asking for payment, rescued the maid, and then left. The “Daheng Duiqiu” teapot is like its creator—clear as the moon and fresh as the breeze, upright and vigorous.

The “You Ting Duiqiu” was made by Shao You Ting, a skilled potter from Shangyuan Village during the Tongzhi and Guangxu eras of the Qing Dynasty. The “You Ting Duiqiu” carries on the majestic and solemn characteristics of the “Daheng Duiqiu” body but boldly reimagines it. He elongates the connection between the body and lid into a neck, slightly curves the spout, making the forceful appearance more prominent, enlarges the mouth, raises the lid to form a semi-spherical shape about 1/3 of the size, and makes the knob rounder. Compared to the “Daheng Duiqiu,” the overall shape of this teapot is closer to the “Duiqiu” concept.

From an aesthetic perspective, the “You Ting Duiqiu” can be considered a recreation and development of the “Daheng Duiqiu,” serving as a bridge between the “Daheng Duiqiu” and the “Shouzhen Duiqiu.”

The “Shouzhen Duiqiu” takes the aesthetic effect and spirit of the “Duiqiu” teapot to the extreme. Cheng Shouzhen was the adopted son of Shao You Ting and inherited his family's techniques, favoring simplicity in his creations. His “Duiqiu” teapot, based on the “Daheng Duiqiu” and “You Ting Duiqiu,” features even more exquisite artistic refinement: the knob, lid, and body visually form a true triad of “balls,” fully embodying the essence of the “Duiqiu.”

In a sense, the “Duiqiu” teapot reached its true “name and perfect aesthetic effect” in the hands of Shouzhen.