If you’ve participated in a traditional Chinese tea ceremony (Gong Fu Cha), you might’ve noticed a tea pet – a small ceramic animal figurine sitting on the tea tray, slurping tea alongside the tea master.
A tea pet is used during Gong Fu Cha for a variety of purposes, most often as a decoration, but also by tea lovers to bring good luck or to achieve the perfect water temperature for tea. As you share your tea pet with tea, the clay's porous nature allows the tea to season the pet, giving it luster and character that develop over a prolonged period of time. By nourishing your tea pet with tea, you are giving it a Tea Soul – Cha Qi (茶气).
During Gong Fu sessions, keep the tea pet hydrated by pouring leftover tea over it. It can be the hot water used to warm the teaware, the water used to rinse the tea leaves, or any leftover steeped tea after filling all the teacups.
In Chinese culture, the cute and chubby face of a pig symbolizes abundance and good fortune. Drinking tea next to the Happy Pig Tea Pet, we hope that your new pig companion rubs off on you and greets you with an abundance of delicious tea and a feeling of peace.
Material: Yixing ZiSha Clay (ZiNi)
Dimensions: 5 x 4 x 3.5cm / 2 x 1.5 x 1.4in
NOTE: Avoid using detergents when cleaning.
