Chaki

Chaki (茶器) is a Japanese term that literally means "tea implement". In the vocabulary of Japanese tea ceremony, it broadly means (1) any implement used in the practice of chanoyu, and more narrowly means (2) the caddy for the powdered green tea (matcha) used in the tea-making procedures, although usually this implies (3) the caddies used in the procedures for making thin tea (usucha).^[1] In this article, the term applies to definition 2.

The caddies generally referred to as chaki are relatively small lidded containers, and are not storage vessels. In preparing to perform a tea-making procedure (temae), the host carefully selects the caddy for the matcha that will be used, and, as an important part of the preparations, neatly places the matcha into it. The chaki is chosen to harmonize with the other equipment used for the occasion, and the chaki is among the items the guests pay particular attention to.

Chaki are classified both by material and shape, as well as by the type of tea preparation (thin tea or thick tea) for which they are used.