What are the most representative types of pottery products in the development of pottery in China?

Pottery is a general term for products made of clay or clay, feldspar and timely mixture, which are molded, dried and fired. Ceramic art refers to the artistic characteristics of firing process, modeling, glaze color and decoration.

In a word, pottery is the oldest arts and crafts in China. As early as the Neolithic Age, there were rough and lifelike gray pottery, red pottery, white pottery, painted pottery and black pottery. Glazed pottery and hard glazed pottery with porcelain properties appeared in Shang Dynasty. Porcelain was produced in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and reached a high degree of maturity in production technology and artistic creation in the Tang Dynasty. In the Song Dynasty, the porcelain industry flourished and famous kilns emerged. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, ceramics surpassed the previous generation in technology from blank making, decoration, glazing to firing. China ceramics has developed to this day. The teapot in Yixing, the pottery in Shiwan, the first tri-colored glazed pottery, the subtractive colored pottery in Zibo, the blue glazed pottery in Tongguan, the carved glazed pottery in Chongning, the porcelain sculpture in Dehua, the willow bottle and the phoenix bottle in Jingdezhen are all world-famous.

The invention of pottery is an important symbol of the development of human civilization, and it is the first time that human beings have used natural things to create new things according to their own will. People mix clay with water, make various utensils, dry them and bake them with fire, which leads to qualitative change and forms pottery. It has opened a new chapter for human beings to use and transform nature, which is of epoch-making significance. The appearance of pottery marked the beginning of the Neolithic Age. The invention of pottery also greatly improved the living conditions of human beings and opened up a new era in the history of human development.

At present, there is no reliable material detailing how pottery was invented. Morgan's book "Ancient Society" points out in the introduction: "Gukuiya was the first person to propose the invention of pottery in the ninth century, that is, people coated clay on combustible containers to prevent fires. Later, they found that only clay could achieve this goal. Therefore, pottery appeared in the world. " Segars further pointed out in his book The Origin of Family, Private Ownership and State: "It can be proved that in many places, perhaps all places, the manufacture of pottery is caused by coating clay on woven or wooden containers to make them fire-resistant. In doing so, it was soon discovered that molded clay could be used for this purpose without an internal container. " The invention of pottery was not the exclusive product of the ancient ancestors of a certain region or a certain tribe. It was independently created by any ancient agricultural tribe and nation in the long-term life practice of mankind.

The appearance of pottery is one of the main features of Neolithic Age in China, which strengthened the stability of early human settlements and enriched people's daily life.

Pottery making is a special process, which is generally made of clay and molded and fired in a kiln. The earliest pottery materials in China appeared in the early Neolithic period. 1962 The round-bottomed jar found at the Xianrendong site in Wannian County, Jiangxi Province, dated by radiocarbon from 6875 to 240 BC, is a kind of red pottery with sand, with rough texture and rope patterns on the outside. From 5500 BC to 4900 BC, the pottery of Peiligang culture was mostly muddy or red pottery with sand, and there were also a few gray pottery, mostly made of mud slats. There are cups, bowls, plates, bowls, pots, basins and so on. Among them, three-legged pot and two-ear pot are the most representative; Its decorative patterns include grate, arc, scratch, nail, nail, rope and so on. In magnetic mountain culture (5400 ~ 5 100), there are kneading methods in addition to the clay strip method. Pottery is mainly mixed with sand, with red, gray, brown, grayish brown and other colors. At the same time, new shapes such as beans, pots and brackets have appeared, and some utensils are decorated with rope patterns, grate patterns, thorn patterns, scratches and patterns. The pottery of Dadiwan culture (5200 ~ 4800 BC) found in Dadiwan, Qin 'an County, Gansu Province is mainly fine sand red pottery, including round bowls, three-legged bowls and three-legged jars. Compared with the above-mentioned pottery, in the Dadiwan cultural pottery, some utensils are red outside and black inside, or red on both sides and black in the middle, which is more distinctive; Its decorative patterns include net horizontal rope pattern, sawtooth pattern and so on. In the middle and late Neolithic period, Yangshao culture, Majiayao culture, Dawenkou culture, Longshan culture and other cultural sites, as well as in the excavation of Shang Dynasty, Western Zhou Dynasty, Qin and Han Dynasties, a large number of pottery were unearthed, which can be divided into painted pottery, ink pottery, white pottery, printed pottery and painted pottery.

Painted pottery is painted pottery, using hematite powder and manganese oxide as pigments, and drawing various patterns on the surface of pottery blank with tools similar to brushes. After firing at 900 ~ 1050℃, black, red and white patterns appear on the orange-red background. Since 19 12 was discovered in the Neolithic cultural site in Yangshao Village, Mianchi County, Henan Province, it has been unearthed in Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Henan, Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Hubei and other provinces, belonging to different cultural types.

Early painted pottery

Yangshao half-slope painted pottery 1953 was first discovered in banpo village, Xi City, Shaanxi Province, hence its name. Mainly distributed in eastern Gansu and Guanzhong area of Shaanxi. Pottery is typical of pots and bowls with curled lips and round bottoms, pots with small mouths, thin necks and big bellies, and bottles with straight mouths and big bellies and pointed bottoms. Their shapes are relatively simple. According to radiocarbon dating, the age is from 4800 BC to 4300 BC. Its decorative patterns mainly include: ① animal patterns, with fish, frogs, deer and birds as decorative objects, especially the fish pattern, fish pattern and fish-bird combination pattern, which are vivid and diverse and have distinct characteristics of the times (see the painted pottery basin with fish pattern unearthed in Xi 'an, Shaanxi Province (Yangshao culture half slope type)). (2) Geometric patterns are mostly evolved from abstract animal patterns, plant patterns and woven patterns, including broadband patterns, triangular patterns, zigzag patterns and diagonal lines. ③ Weaving pattern, line pattern, basket pattern, rope pattern, etc. In addition, there are various symbols on the black wide band pattern along the painted pottery bowl mouth, which may represent various special meanings or a specific mark. Yangshao culture half-slope gourd-shaped painted pottery bottle (unearthed in Lintong, Shaanxi Province) Yangshao culture temple bottom ditch painted pottery was discovered in Miaodigou, Shaanxi County, Henan Province on 1953. Its distribution areas are Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan provinces. Pots, bowls and bottles are still the main shapes, and there are also urns and cans. Most of the shapes are flat bottom, big mouth, curved wall and small, and most of them are inverted triangles, giving people a feeling of grace, fullness, lightness and stability. According to radiocarbon dating, the age is about 3900 BC. Its decorative patterns are: ① plant patterns, mostly spiral patterns and leaf patterns; (2) animal patterns, which are rare, have images such as frogs and birds; ③ Weaving pattern, line pattern, basket pattern and rope pattern; (4) Geometric patterns, mainly strip patterns composed of points, hooks, arcs, triangles and curves.

1924 painted pottery of Majiayao culture type was found in Majiayao Village, Lintao County, Gansu Province, covering Qinghai, Ningxia and Sichuan provinces. Pots, bowls, cans and pots are still the main shapes of utensils, and the pointed-bottom utensils have basically disappeared. Its age is from 3300 BC to 2900 BC according to radioactive carbon. Its decorative patterns include: ① figures, such as 1973 painted pottery basin with dancing patterns unearthed in Shangsunjiazhai, Datong County, Qinghai Province, and 15 people dancing hand in hand in three groups (see painted pottery basin with dancing patterns unearthed in Datong, Qinghai Province (Majiayao cultural type)); ② Animal patterns, including tadpole patterns and frog patterns; The most striking features of the times are vortex patterns and wave patterns, and the patterns rotate and fluctuate, giving people a strong sense of movement (see spiral painted pottery basin with colorful pictures unearthed in Yongjing, Gansu Province (Majiayao type of Majiayao culture)).

The painted pottery of Majiayao, an intermediate culture, was discovered in Hezheng County, Gansu Province (now Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture) in 1924, and distributed in the northeast of Gansu Province and Qinghai Province. There are short necks, wide shoulders, pot with bulging belly, pot with single handle, closed bowl, open flat-bottomed small bowl and so on. According to radiocarbon dating, it can be traced back to 2650 BC to 2350 BC. There are sawtooth patterns, reticulate patterns and fish, shellfish, human and frog patterns, especially sawtooth spiral patterns, wavy patterns and sawtooth patterns. In addition, some objects are shaped into human heads with vivid images.

Machang painted pottery of Majiayao culture was discovered in Machangyuan, Minhe County, Qinghai Province in the autumn of 1924. Mainly distributed in Qinghai, Gansu and other provinces. The shape of the vessel basically follows the shape of the mid-level mountain, which is towering and beautiful compared with the mid-level mountain. A single-ear cylindrical cup appeared, and the shapes of ears and buttons were varied. According to radiocarbon dating, its age is 2350 ~ 2050 BC. Decorative patterns include concentric circles, diamonds, humanoid frogs, parallel lines, palindromes and hook-and-loop patterns.

In addition, painted pottery has also been unearthed in Dawenkou culture, Daxi culture, Qujialing culture and Qijia culture. However, there is a certain gap between its quantity, scale and artistic level and the above cultural types.

black pottery

In the final stage of firing utensils, slowly add water from the top of the kiln to extinguish charcoal, producing thick smoke, intentionally blackening and producing black pottery. It is another peak of China Neolithic pottery industry after painted pottery. 1928, black pottery was first discovered in Chengziya, Longshan Town, Zhangqiu County (formerly Licheng County), Shandong Province. Its cultural remains are called "Longshan culture" by archaeologists. According to radiocarbon dating, its age is from 2500 BC to 2000 BC. This typical Longshan culture, also known as Shandong Longshan culture, is a late Neolithic culture developed after Dawenkou culture. Its distribution area is mainly in Shandong and northern Jiangsu. As an important feature of Longshan culture, black pottery is another brilliant creation comparable to painted pottery in China's Neolithic pottery making process.

Compared with painted pottery, the types of vessel shapes in Longshan black pottery in Shandong Province are richer and more regular. There are mainly cans, pots, jars, beans, cups, ding and so on. Its shape is different from painted pottery, which is more practical in life, novel and ingenious in design, practical in effect and more aesthetic (see the painted black pottery cup with thin handle and high feet unearthed in Rizhao, Shandong Province (Longshan culture)). For example, the tripod was developed on the basis of the tripod, and the solid tripod was changed into a hollow tripod. The bottom of the hollow tripod was hollow, which expanded the contact area with fire and shortened the cooking time when boiling water and cooking food. Wei's modeling is particularly stable and symmetrical because of three plump bags, which reveals a flexible charm in stability. The evolved □ is not only unique in shape, but also more attractive in aesthetics. Modeling, may be inspired by birds, much like a bird with a long beak, there are three plump bags standing steadily. However, it is different from Wei in shape and structure. One side of the beak extends upward and outward, which is very lively and dexterous, and other curved utensils such as cups, beans and reeds are also designed and made with great ingenuity. Compared with painted pottery, the accessories of various parts of the utensils are also rich and varied, such as the addition of covers, the dual use of one cover, and the use of animals as covers.

The production of black pottery was made by hand in the early days, and it was built with clay bars. Its tires are thicker and its surface is not so bright. By the time of Longshan culture in Shandong, the rotation system had been widely used. The improvement of pottery kiln and the mastery of kiln sealing technology greatly improved the technology. Therefore, black pottery is mostly round, its carcass is extremely thin and uniform, and it has the characteristics of black, thin and light, so it has the reputation of "eggshell pottery". The decoration of black pottery is very simple. In addition to the early weaving patterns, basket patterns, rope patterns and some hollowed-out carved patterns, decoration is generally not emphasized, and it wins with rich and diverse shapes and novel designs. In the process of making wheels, Shandong Longshan black pottery left many unexpected concave and convex lines (also called wheel lines or string lines) on its body, which also had a rhythmic beauty.

Black pottery of other cultural types ① Black pottery in the early Longshan period, with a tripod shape, was mostly made of mud slats. The body is grayish white, rough in texture, decorated with basket patterns, rope patterns, scratches, overlapping ornaments and so on. Mainly distributed in southern Shanxi, western Henan, Shaanxi Guanzhong and other places. ② Black pottery in the late Longshan period, represented by the second phase culture of Hougang in Henan and the second phase culture of Keshengzhuang in Shaanxi. At this time, the shape of the container has increased, including retort, retort, jar, cup and so on. While the tripod descends. Typical eggshell pottery appeared, and the decorative patterns were mainly basket patterns and rope patterns. Production methods include molding and wheel manufacturing, in addition to the mud slab construction method. (3) Black pottery of Liangzhu culture, distributed in northern Zhejiang and southern Jiangsu. Liangzhu culture is a late Neolithic culture with similar characteristics to Longshan culture. Its black pottery is also very developed, including bean-shaped, disc-shaped, statue-shaped, pot-shaped, reed-shaped, pot-shaped and so on. , mostly in a wheel system, the surface is polished and shiny black.

Bai Tao

Fired with kaolin, the texture is white and delicate. It originated in the Neolithic Age, and in the Shang Dynasty, due to the improvement of production technology, the raw materials were more refined and the degree of firing was just right, thus making the fired objects more pure and lovely. The shapes of white pottery are mostly daily necessities, such as pots, rafts and reeds. Its decorative patterns mainly absorb the decorative patterns of bronzes, such as animal face pattern, gluttonous pattern, Yun Leiwen, zigzag pattern and so on. There are two methods of decoration: carving and bas-relief. The decoration of white pottery is often all over the utensils, with rigorous composition and varied. For example, in the Palace Museum, the Shang Dynasty white pottery pot recovered from the fragments is engraved with bas-relief on the main body and painted with cloud and thunder patterns on the bottom according to the size of the blank position. Shading and bas-relief are distinct, patchwork and harmonious with each other, which makes the objects look solemn and luxurious.

White pottery was used by slave owners and nobles at that time, and gradually disappeared in the Western Zhou Dynasty.

Printed pottery, before it is dried, the required pattern is printed on a fixed part with a seal, and then fired. According to the firing temperature, it can be divided into embossed soft pottery and embossed hard pottery. The former is divided into argillaceous and fine sand, mostly reddish brown, grayish white, gray and other colors, which were popular from the late Neolithic period to the Shang Dynasty. The latter is developed on the basis of the former, because the firing temperature is high, so the fetal quality is hard and gray, which appeared after the Shang Dynasty. The shapes of pottery are mostly daily utensils, mainly including jars, pots, bowls, cups, plates, beans, reeds, statues and so on. Manufacturing methods include manual manufacturing, molding manufacturing and wheel manufacturing. The decorative pattern is printed on the blank with a stamp. At first, it was only to prevent the vessel from deforming and strengthen the ceramic blank. Therefore, there are many traces of cloth, mat and rope patterns on early printed pottery. Later, with the improvement of technology and the development of people's aesthetic ability, the patterns gradually became rich and exquisite. The patterns of printed pottery are geometric figures, mainly including water ripples, rice grains, palindromes, checkered patterns, woven patterns and Yun Leiwen. Its decorative patterns are mostly in harmony with the shapes of utensils, such as zigzag, Yun Leiwen, palindrome and other rough patterns, which are mostly used in urns, altars and larger pots. Small pots and pans are mostly decorated with exquisite patterns such as rice grains and checkered patterns, especially in the Shang, Western Zhou and Spring and Autumn Periods, with uniform lines, rigorous structure and a sense of rhythm.

The decorative process of relief pottery is in the stamping process after the objects are stripped, which is relatively simple to make, and once it is made into a mold, even people who can't depict it can do stamping. Therefore, it is simple and suitable for mass production, so it has developed greatly in a certain area and has become a pottery-making process with distinctive regional characteristics since the late Neolithic age in China. Mainly popular in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Taiwan Province, Jiangxi, Anhui and other provinces, prevailing in Shang, Western Zhou and Spring and Autumn Period. During the Warring States period, with the rise and rapid development of black pottery and painted pottery, it declined and gradually disappeared after the Han Dynasty.

Painted pottery, that is, pottery is painted with red, yellow, white, black and other color patterns after firing. The color is easy to fall off, and it flourished in the Warring States and the Han Dynasty. Most of the vessels are imitation bronzes and ceramic vessels, mainly including cups, plates, bowls, pots, boxes, pots, stoves, beans, pots and so on. There are two manufacturing methods: wheel system and molding, with wheel system being the majority. The tire colors are gray and brown. Gray tires are painted with black pottery first, then white powder, and then black line, red and other colors. Brown tires are mostly coated with white powder or yellow powder, and then coated with red, with bright colors and strong contrast. There are also lines drawn with gold and silver. In the Han Dynasty, its colors increased, and it was painted in red, gray, brown, green, blue, yellow and orange. Decorative patterns include: ① geometric patterns, which account for the largest proportion, including chordal patterns, rhombic patterns, sawtooth patterns, triangular patterns, grid patterns, circular patterns and so on. 2 moire; (3) Petal patterns, including plum blossom, persimmon, rolling grass and other patterns; (4) Birds and beasts, such as dragons, phoenixes and paving stones. Its pattern organization is mostly continuous in two directions, with bright colors and strong contrast, which makes painted pottery more brilliant and rich.

Painted pottery is mainly used as funerary wares. Therefore, it was especially popular in the Han Dynasty when the wind of reburial prevailed. Originated in the Central Plains, and later spread to most parts of the country, Luoyang, Huixian and Shanxian in Henan Province, Changsha and Changde in Hunan Province were more unearthed.

After the Shang Dynasty, there appeared primitive celadon fired with kaolin. Because porcelain is superior to pottery in quality and service life, it develops rapidly. In the Southern and Northern Dynasties, especially from the Tang and Song Dynasties to the Ming and Qing Dynasties until modern times, it has become the main vessel used in people's daily life. With the improvement of technology, porcelain has developed by leaps and bounds, becoming the main category of arts and crafts in China. In this case, pottery gradually lost its previous scale, and its shape and decoration are far from painted pottery and black pottery. Only black pottery in the Warring States period, glazed pottery in the Qin and Han Dynasties, pottery buildings and boats as funerary wares, and tri-colored pottery in the Tang Dynasty reflect the artistic characteristics and lifestyle of their respective times with their respective shapes and patterns. Among them, Tang Sancai is a kind of low-temperature lead glazed pottery, which is called Sancai because it uses many colors such as yellow, green and brown. Its varieties include utensils, figures, animal statues and so on. Among them, there are many kinds of utensils, novel and unique shapes, ingenious design and gorgeous colors, which make Tang Sancai a wonderful flower in China's pottery making process and widely loved by people. Until modern times, it was still imitating the tri-color production in the Tang Dynasty. In addition, tile, brick and pottery figurines in the Warring States, Qin, Han and Tang Dynasties, as well as modern folk pottery in Yixing, Jiangsu, Shiwan, Guangdong and Rongchang, Sichuan, also occupy an important position in China's craft history with their exquisite patterns, vivid shapes and fresh and simple styles.