There is a clay material that is both mysterious and charming, and that is Republican Green. The teapots you see today are made with Republican Green clay. There is much controversy surrounding this clay, so let's delve into it. First and foremost, Republican Green is definitely not the original ore. The natural purple clay without any additives cannot achieve this coloration. Therefore, Republican Green is formulated by adding cobalt oxide.
You might wonder if this is what is commonly referred to as "chemical clay." Actually, it is not. We have discussed the concept of chemical clay before, which involves using non-purple clay materials combined with a large amount of chemical coloring agents, this type of clay is called chemical clay, and it does not belong to the category of purple clay. It simply mimics the color of purple clay.
On the other hand, the base clay of Republican Green is Ben Shan green clay, which is a type of purple clay. A suitable amount of cobalt oxide is added to the Ben Shan green clay, resulting in Republican Green. Its essence remains purple clay, but its color is altered by cobalt oxide.
One of the most concerning questions is whether Republican Green clay is safe. Republican Green clay has been around since the era of the Republic of China. According to records, it was initially formulated by Mr. Wang Shijie, a teacher at the Yixing Ceramic Vocational School at that time. Later on, many artists used this clay for teapot making due to its unique color, including masters like Gu Jingzhou, Wang Yinxiang, and He Daohong. Therefore, at least during that time, Republican Green clay with added oxides can be considered a safe clay material.
