There is no final conclusion about the origin of dark-red enameled pottery. The opinion that dark-red enameled pottery originates from a monk in Jin Sha Si and is inherited by Gongchun in Zhou Gaoqi’s Yang Xian Ming Hu Xi in Ming Dynasty is written by works in different Dynasties. However

Zhou Gaoqi is 100 years later than Gongchun and the descriptions in Zhou’s book is contravention to Ming rules. Most excavations of dark-red enameled pottery are from Emperor Wanli period. We can’t know the exact function of them. Most dark-red enameled pottery used to make tea in Ming Dynasty paintings shows up after Emperor Wanli period

especially in Emperor Chongzhen period. It is getting popular to make tea using dark-red enameled pottery during the shift between Ming and Qing Dynasties. One possible reason is the lonely lifestyle of literati in Jiang Nan district.