Hirado ware

This has a finer grain than most Japanese porcelains, allowing fine detail and thin and complicated openwork in forms.

In 1637 potters were settled there, and the next year Sanojō was made chief administrator of local production, and by 1650 three potting villages had been combined into a single enterprise, by now making porcelain, though probably not yet exclusively.

The range of shapes was also greatly expanded, from being mainly vessels for food and drink to include a variety of boxes, equipment for the scholar's desk such as brush rests, and some accessories for clothing such as netsuke.

[5] A motif of "Chinese boys" (karako) chasing butterflies with landscape details in the background became a distinctive feature of Hirado.

Initially the number of boys shown was strictly graded, with seven depicted on pieces for presentation to the emperor or shōgun, five for daimyō and high officials, and three for others.

Sculptural vessels with the form of animals began to appear, as well as designs including relief and small okimono figurines that were purely decorative.