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Can I buy a real purple sand pot for two or three hundred? Sharing of three tips for distinguishing true and false purple teapot

Published: 2026-01-12 Author: World Gafei

Last Updated: 2026/01/12, Many tea consumers are fascinated by Yixing purple sand (Yixing purple sand) teapot. This clay is considered to be high-quality clay for brewing high-quality tea, especially fermented tea, such as oolong tea and Pu'er tea. This is mainly due to the porosity of the clay, which can breathe through the walls of the teapot, thus promoting the brewing process, resulting in the best tea and eliminating some less desirable elements, if present. Original

Many tea consumers are fascinated by Yixing purple sand (Yixing purple sand) teapot. This clay is considered to be high-quality clay for brewing high-quality tea, especially fermented tea, such as oolong tea and Pu'er tea. This is mainly due to the porosity of the clay, which can "breathe" through the teapot wall, thus promoting the brewing process, resulting in the best tea and eliminating some less desirable elements, if present.

The original Yixing Zisha teapot was defined as a product produced by clay in the area of Huangchangshan (Huanglongshan) in Yixing City. The Chinese government has shut down mining in the area since 2005 because of growing demand for the product, limited mineral deposits and human mining. Since then, any symbolic mining has been very limited.

However, there are similar mineral deposits in the surrounding areas, which is currently the main source of purple sand clay supply. This has also sparked a discussion if these can be called Yixing purple sand, if the quality is comparable.

Purple sand products adopt the following formula, which is suitable for products with limited resources:

Increased interest and demand-rising prices-artificially increased production-alternatives

Purple sand itself has a variety of styles and quality grades. It is difficult to distinguish the quality of purple sand at today's point of purchase.

Substitute product

Here are some ways to create "alternative products":

Use clay mined from outside Yixing

Reassemble purple sand with low quality clay mixed with artificial pigment and particle composition

The false information among na ï ve purple sand consumers, including the clay type, origin, quality and manufacturer of purple sand products, makes it difficult for consumers to identify.

Here are some techniques to make the purple teapot look more "authentic", which will only make people more confused:

Due to the lack of quartz particles, ultra-fine clay is mostly considered to be of poor quality (another discussion). Some manufacturers burn the clay in half until they harden, grind them into small particles and mix them with the original clay to give a "rough" appearance. These particles are not quartz particles in the real purple sand mud. It only serves the appearance of quartz particles, not their function.

Some manufacturers mix sand particles and artificial pigments into low-grade clay to produce the consistency and texture of high-grade purple sand.

As a tea consumer and purple sand enthusiast, what I am most interested in (design and details) is the texture of purple sand, which is what makes Yixing purple sand teapot unique.

Through a lot of information, from the point of view of purple sand producers and collectors, it seems that there is not a set of clear standards to guide purple sand consumers to buy the real Yixing purple sand. Experience seems to be the only reliable source. However, this may take years to develop. At the same time, "substitutes" are getting better and better at imitating the real thing.