Among all types of Zhuni clay, Zhuni Da Hong Pao is the highest grade, and it is rare for the bright and gorgeous red color. Zhuni Da Hong Pao has a very high shrinkage rate while firing, more than 30% at 1080ºC, which is trice more than Zini clay. For that reason, wrinkle, crack, collapse, and deform happen frequently in the kiln giving a low yield, so that it was only used for color decoration on normal Zhuni clay in ancient times, due to the lower skill that had in the past time.
 
This Gong Deng pot is classic and elegant, true to its title, as Gong Deng means palace lantern. The slick surface is very refined and has a lovely sandy texture, with the raw ore particles visible. The proper volume is just right for a Gongfu Cha tasting session among 1-3 people. Suitable for all kinds of Oolong, Puerh, Heicha etc.
 
The photos were taken under natural light and not edited. There may be subtle nuance when you see the teapot under different lighting.