A skill that ignites the imagination

Jorge Cortés | China Daily

Under the hands of skilled craftsmen, and a furnace hitting 1,200 C, clay can be transformed into a stunning piece of porcelain. This is a combination of Chinese culture, aesthetics and avant-garde technology. Since the Shang Dynasty (c. 16th century-11th century BC), the flame of kilns has burnt with the development of China’s culture. China’s more than 3,000-year-long history of ceramics is also a history of technology and cultural exchanges with the world. Ceramics, together with tea and silk were three major export commodities of ancient China.

01

Shang (c. 16th century-11th century BC) and Zhou (c. 11th century-256 BC) dynasties and proto-porcelain


The period saw the birth of “proto-porcelain”, a product in the transition from pottery to “mature” ones, known to people today as porcelain. Proto-porcelain assumed a grayish-green in color. The National Museum of China has a green-glazed jar with net patterns, dated to the Western Zhou Dynasty (c. 11th century-771 BC). Studies of this object have revealed two major evolutions of the proto-porcelain at the time: an increasing production of daily-used vessels; more objects molded in the shapes of ritual bronzeware.




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Proto-porcelain was developed out of the hard-bodied white pottery and those impressed with geometric patterns from their time.
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Ritual bronzewares in proto-porcelain period. such as zun, a kind of wine vessel, and dou, a container for pickles, meat paste and other kinds of flavoring.

02

Late Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220) and mature porcelain


Regions along the Cao’e River in Shangyu, in today’s Zhejiang province, became a center for making green-glazed proto-porcelain during the third century BC. The production scaled up, and the wares used for rituals were transported elsewhere, even deeper in the country, to help spread the practice. Finally, in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the “mature” porcelain, exhibiting a celadon glaze, were successfully produced at major kilns in Shangyu, such as the Xiaoxiantan kiln of which the relic location was discovered in 1974 and is now deemed a heritage site.

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The wares used for rituals were transported elsewhere, even deeper in the country, to help spread the practice.

03

Tang Dynasty (618-907) and ceramics export trade


Tang Dynasty is synonymous with prosperity, openness and diversity, and one vivid example of its power and extensive influence is the rise of several major ports, including Guangzhou (Guangdong province), Yangzhou (Jiangsu province) and Mingzhou (today's Ningbo of Zhejiang province). These benefited from the booming international trade on the Maritime Silk Road. Quality ceramics from various kilns across the country were a popular export. Fine examples of representative export types can be found in the collection of National Museum of China, such as the world renowned sancai (three-color) jars and vases. Celadons from the Yue kiln sites across Zhejiang were also well received.



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Celadons from the Yue kiln sites across Zhejiang, including Shangyu, Yuyao, Ningbo and Cixi, were also well received, as the production had reached an apex in technique and artistry.


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04

Song Dynasty (960-1279) and the “five kilns”


The eruption of art products is a Song Dynasty hallmark. A lifestyle nurtured by painting, calligraphy, porcelain and other works of intricate crafts was prompted by emperors, aristocrats and intellectuals to demonstrate extraordinary status and tastes. Among these objects of culture were wares from the prominent “five kilns” — Ru, Guan, Ge, Ding and Jun. Wares of the five great kilns are monochromatic basically, sometimes with slightly impressed patterns, which transmit serenity, grace and subtlety. Ru ware is often highly regarded as the foremost of the five as its distinctive tianqing colored glaze presents a unique classic temperament.

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The hue of Ru porcelain was derived from a verse saying “the subtle blue tone of sky emerging as the rain gradually stops, and accumulated clouds disperse”.






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05

Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) and the cobalt-blue qinghua ware


The Yuan qinghua porcelain features varieties of patterns painted in cobalt-blue pigment on a white ground. The popularity of qinghua ware diversified the trend of ceramics at the time — before that, monochromatic porcelain had been dominant. Yuan qinghua ware were predominantly fired at kilns in Jingdezhen, the production hub in Jiangxi province. The sizes of these objects were bigger than those of previous times, and their shapes mainly included the jar, the plum vase and the elevated-foot cup, showing an infusion of the aesthetic favors and lifestyles of the nomadic tribes, as the Mongols seized power and established a monarchy.

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The type features varieties of patterns — normally floral motifs, animals and human stories — painted in cobalt-blue pigment on a white ground, for which it was named qinghua.

06

Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties and multicolored porcelain


The multicolored porcelain production flourished in the Ming and Qing dynasties. The milky, semitranslucent surface became a stage on which a diversity of beautiful colors and motifs were presented to exhibit combinations beyond imagination. One highly prized kind of polychromatic porcelain is the doucai ware of which the technique achieved perfection in the years of Chenghua, the reign title of Ming emperor Zhu Jianshen. Artisans used cobalt-blue pigment to create delimitations of the patterns — flowers, birds and human figures — applied a thin layer of glossy glaze, and then fired the object for the first time. They would then fill in the colors and fire the ware again.

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In the years of Chenghua, the reign title of Ming emperor Zhu Jianshen, porcelain was usually made smaller in size, so that emperors, who ordered and sometimes supervised the production and patterns, could fondle the objects in their hands to feel the tender texture and appreciate the details.

Graphics and web by Jorge Cortes | Text by Lin Qi | China Daily
Photos provided to China Daily by National Museum of China