Luminous Porcelain Gaiwan Luminous porcelain is made by arranging small holes in a porcelain body in a regular pattern, filling those holes with a highly transparent, special glaze, and then applying glaze to the entire piece before firing. In Japan, it is known as "hotarude" (firefly hand). It was first produced in the Hongzhou kiln in Jiangxi during the Sui and Tang dynasties, and later, after being made in Jingdezhen during the Yuan dynasty, it became one of the representative porcelains of Jingdezhen. While that is the history, this piece was made in Fujian, not Jingdezhen. The continuous depiction of plants represents a good luck pattern symbolizing prosperity, and the flowers are sunflowers, also known as "taiyoka" (sunflower). ※ The lid of a gaiwan is used for stirring tea and for pouring tea by slightly shifting it to create a gap. Therefore, it is designed to be stable when tilted, and it is common for it to be unstable or have gaps when placed straight.