chafyiTeaware
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Shape Chinasources cited

Well-railing pot

jǐnglán hú

Traditional 井欄壺

A Yixing teapot whose cylindrical body recalls a well curb. Compare the height of the body, the shoulder and the fitted lid to distinguish its variants.

On this page
Jinglan teapot, side view
Jinglan teapot, side view
  1. 1Knob
  2. 2Lid
  3. 3Spout
  4. 4Handle
  5. 5Body
  6. 6Base
Side view of a teapot whose walls slope inward toward the top, with a straight spout and a column knob.Approximate size

Form#

Knob
1arched bridge knob (桥形钮) on classic Mansheng examples, or low flattened column knob (扁柱钮) on Gu Jingzhou's variants
Lid
2flat embedded or lipped lid (平嵌盖 / 压盖) matching the round or hexagonal mouth
Spout
3short one-bend curved spout (一弯流) on the classic Mansheng and low jinglan pots; straight spout on the six-sided variant
Handle
4flying loop handle (飞把 / 环耳鋬) with a small lower tab (垂耳)
Body
5cylindrical stone well-curb profile (井栏身筒) whose walls converge slightly upward from a wider base to a narrower mouth, with a stepped bevel at the shoulder (折肩); six-sided in one Gu Jingzhou version
Base
6wide flat base with a shallow ring foot (浅圈足), stamped 阿曼陀室 on Mansheng examples

123 Numbers mark the parts described under Form.

Working volume#

Use the volume to the intended fill level, rather than the exterior dimensions or shape name. Leave room for the leaves and lid, and choose cups or a serving pitcher that can receive a complete infusion. Two pots of the same named form may have very different working capacities.

Variants and sub-types#

Name中文DifferenceSources
Mansheng Classic Jinglan曼生井栏壶A tall cylindrical body with a defined shoulder, fitted lid and loop handle. The disputed museum measurements and specific well-origin story are discussed under History.13
Low Jinglan (Ai Jinglan)矮井栏 / 顾景舟井栏Compressed cylindrical variant refined by Gu Jingzhou (顾景舟), lowering the wall height and softening the shoulder bevel and handle corner for balanced one-handed pouring.123
Six-sided Jinglan (Liufang Jinglan)六方井栏壶Slab-joined faceted (镶身筒) variant whose well-railing body, neck, and inset lid are constructed as regular hexagons with crisp vertical arrises.13

History#

  1. Jinglan takes its name from a well-curb resemblance. Accounts connect examples with Chen Mansheng and Yang Pengnian. The inherited descriptions of a Nanjing Museum example give conflicting heights, 8.7 and 8.9 cm; its accession and catalogue passage must be checked before assigning a measurement or identifying a particular historic well as the model.
  2. 20th centuryGu Jingzhou created both a faceted six-sided well-railing pot (六方井栏) and, late in life, a compressed rounded version (矮井栏).13

Attributions are shown as the source states them.

Sources#

  1. 顾见心舟-品茶啜茗当清风 (观复博物馆, 2025-03-08)Tencent News, Guanfu Museum official account · Journalism and features · Accessed 2026-11-02 ↗
  2. Gu JingzhouWikipedia · Reference works · Accessed 2026-11-02 ↗
  3. 顧景舟主編《宜興紫砂珍賞》 / Appreciation of Yixing Zisha Ware (1992)三聯書店（香港） / Joint Publishing (HK) · Museum catalogues and books
Status and editorial notes sources cited

Sources are listed below. Their presence does not certify every claim; source-specific interpretations and unresolved questions are identified in the text. This page has not received independent expert approval.

2026-11-05: revised after the homepage evidence audit. Historical attributions, model dimensions and practical guidance are distinguished; unresolved claims remain qualified. Earlier editorial conclusions are superseded by the current text.