Written in the kanji as “tea scoop”, a Chashaku is a narrow, thin teaspoon used to transfer powdered matcha from its container into a Chawan tea bowl. The original Chashaku imported to Japan from China were made of ivory, and have since evolved to be carved from a single piece of bamboo or wood, typically with a nodule around the centre. Traditionally, tea masters would carve their own bamboo Chashaku together with a matching storage tube, and bestow it with a poetic name, known as Mei (銘). Chashaku are sized to measure out just the right amount of matcha: to make regular, thin Usucha tea, use 1.5 to 2 scoops per Chawan. For thick Koicha tea (that is almost exclusively served in a ceremonial setting) as much as 6 scoops may be used.