Chagama (茶釜)
Chagama is a type of tea utensils used in Sado, which is used to boil water for tea. Chagama used for furo (furnace) is called a furogama tea kettle.
As it is known in a Japanese folktale called "Bunbuku chagama" (The Magic Teakettle), chagama is made mainly of iron and comes in various sizes from 30cm to around 100cm in diameter. Chagama was developed in Japan long ago and its cultural region remains in Japan but it is used throughout the world as Chanoyu (the tea ceremony) is also practiced outside Japan.
Commonly chagama is placed directly onto a hearth, but there is also a small chagama, which are hanged to a chain suspended from ceiling. This is called tsuri chagama (hanging chagama, iron tea ceremony pot) and is used in early spring (around March to April).
Chagama is an appreciative item like other tea utensils. Commonly guests appreciate from the front when chagama is off the hearth at charcoal temae. Guests do not touch chagama.
A craftsman making chagama is called kamashi (a tea kettle caster).