Buddha's Hand Melon Hanwa yixing clay woodfired teapot # 94853

The exact form indicated by the Chinese name "佛手瓜汉瓦" is not a standard, widely documented teapot type and is somewhat ambiguous without seeing the object. The name appears to combine evocative elements — 佛手 (Buddha’s hand), 瓜 (gourd), and 汉瓦 (Han tile) — so the safest reading is that it names a teapot whose profile or decorative vocabulary references those motifs rather than a single canonical historical model.

General historical context: From the late Ming into the Qing dynasty, Chinese teapots — especially those made in the Yixing zisha tradition — were often modeled on natural forms (fruits, gourds, shells) or architectural elements and given poetic compound names. Artisans and scholar-collectors prized small, hand-formed shapes that referenced auspicious symbols; the Buddha’s hand citron and the gourd both carry long-standing connotations of blessing, longevity and abundance. References to “Han” or to tiles evoke antiquity and classical aesthetics rather than a fixed manufacture period.

Short note on the shape: based on the components of the name, expect a compact, lobed body suggesting a segmented gourd or fingered citron, with surface or lid details that recall a low, ridged “tile” profile. The overall effect would be naturalistic yet geometric, balancing organic curves with restrained architectural lines.
Wood-fired handmade Yixing teapot made from Duanni clay sourced from the original Huanglongshan mine. Xu Shun Wei.