Why are China's ceramics world-famous?

China is a world-famous ancient country of ceramics, and ceramics is one of the most important traditional crafts in China. As early as 8,000 years ago in the early Neolithic Age, China had already made and used pottery, and primitive porcelain appeared in the middle of Shang Dynasty in BC16th century. As far as technology is concerned, pottery and porcelain are two different stages of technological development, and porcelain is developed from pottery. There are some differences between them in raw materials, firing temperature and physical properties. After the appearance of porcelain, the production of pottery did not stop, but developed two tributaries respectively. In the late Neolithic period, China's excellent craft varieties painted pottery appeared. The culture at this time is called painted pottery culture, because painted pottery was first discovered in Yangshao village, Mianchi, Henan Province, also known as Yangshao culture. Painted pottery is a reddish-brown or brownish-yellow pottery with black and red decorative patterns, which is beautifully shaped and beautifully decorated. Painted pottery is widely distributed, including Yangshao culture in the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River, Dawenkou culture in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River and Huaihe River (4500-6400 years ago) and Hemudu culture in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, among which Yangshao culture is the most developed. Painted pottery is good at decoration. At that time, people often put utensils on the ground, so the decorative belt of painted pottery is often on the upper side, and different decorative angles such as overlooking and side view are considered to reflect the complete effect.

After the decline of painted pottery technology, black pottery culture characterized by black pottery appeared in the lower reaches of the Yellow River and the eastern coastal areas. It was first discovered in Longshan county, Licheng, Shandong Province, so it is also called Longshan culture. The production technology of black pottery adopts wheel system. This important technical innovation makes the shape of pottery round and tidy, the thickness of pottery blank is uniform, and the productivity of pottery making is improved. At this time, the kiln sealing technology has been mastered, and the ceramic kiln has been improved. The kiln mouth is small and the kiln room is deep, which is conducive to raising the temperature of the kiln room. The advantages of black pottery are dark color, light and thin body, bright surface and easy threading or ear attachment. Because the pottery tires of black pottery are gray-black and difficult to decorate, they often win by modeling.

Primitive porcelain first appeared in Shang Dynasty, and its glaze was green and slightly yellowish brown, but its raw material treatment and mud refining were still rough. In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, porcelain-making technology entered a mature stage, and a special porcelain kiln appeared in Zhejiang, which became the center of celadon production. During the Six Dynasties, celadon dominated the whole country, and the firing area was further expanded.

In the late Northern Dynasties, the successful firing of white porcelain opened a new era in the history of China ceramics. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, China enjoyed unprecedented prosperity in politics, economy, culture and commerce, which promoted the progress of porcelain industry and the expansion of porcelain market, forming a pattern of porcelain production: celadon was mainly produced in the south, Yue kiln was the most typical, porcelain tires were thin and dense, and enamel color was as smooth as jade; White porcelain in northern Yao Xing is the representative of "Northern White". Porcelain is solid and dense, and its color is as white as snow, making a rock-breaking sound. Tri-colored pottery in Tang Dynasty is a wonderful flower with unique style, which has both daily necessities and funerary objects. By the end of the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, many famous kilns had appeared in the history of China ceramics.

After the decline of painted pottery technology, black pottery culture characterized by black pottery appeared in the lower reaches of the Yellow River and the eastern coastal areas. It was first discovered in Longshan county, Licheng, Shandong Province, so it is also called Longshan culture. The production technology of black pottery adopts wheel system. This important technical innovation makes the shape of pottery round and tidy, the thickness of pottery blank is uniform, and the productivity of pottery making is improved. At this time, the kiln sealing technology has been mastered, and the ceramic kiln has been improved. The kiln mouth is small and the kiln room is deep, which is conducive to raising the temperature of the kiln room. The advantages of black pottery are dark color, light and thin body, bright surface and easy threading or ear attachment. Because the pottery tires of black pottery are gray-black and difficult to decorate, they often win by modeling.

Primitive porcelain first appeared in Shang Dynasty, and its glaze was green and slightly yellowish brown, but its raw material treatment and mud refining were still rough. In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, porcelain-making technology entered a mature stage, and a special porcelain kiln appeared in Zhejiang, which became the center of celadon production. During the Six Dynasties, celadon dominated the whole country, and the firing area was further expanded.

In the late Northern Dynasties, the successful firing of white porcelain opened a new era in the history of China ceramics. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, China enjoyed unprecedented prosperity in politics, economy, culture and commerce, which promoted the progress of porcelain industry and the expansion of porcelain market, forming a pattern of porcelain production: celadon was mainly produced in the south, Yue kiln was the most typical, porcelain tires were thin and dense, and enamel color was as smooth as jade; White porcelain in northern Yao Xing is the representative of "Northern White". Porcelain is solid and dense, and its color is as white as snow, making a rock-breaking sound. Tri-colored pottery in Tang Dynasty is a wonderful flower with unique style, which has both daily necessities and funerary objects. By the end of the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, many famous kilns had appeared in the history of China ceramics.

Song dynasty is an era of famous porcelain. Emerging porcelain kilns have sprung up all over the country with strong local styles, and gradually formed six kiln systems: Dingyuan kiln system (now Quyang, Hebei Province), Yaozhou kiln system (now Tongchuan, Shaanxi Province), Jun kiln system (now Yuxian, Henan Province), Cizhou kiln system (now Cixian, Hebei Province), Longquan celadon system in the south (now Longquan, Zhejiang Province) and Jingdezhen celadon system. Ding kiln printed white porcelain has a rigorous composition, Yaozhou kiln carved celadon is sharp and unique, Jun kiln has become colorful, Cizhou kiln black and white porcelain is rich in local flavor, Longquan celadon is lush, Jingdezhen celadon is crystal clear, which has opened up a new realm for China ceramics. In addition, tea fighting prevailed in the Song Dynasty, and black glazed teacups were once favored for their convenience in setting off white tea foam to observe the tea color. Therefore, tea sets have elegant values besides practical functions, among which the rabbit lamp made in Fujian kiln is the most prominent.

The Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties are a new stage in the development of ceramic technology in China, with diverse shapes, gorgeous glaze and ornate decoration, and a large number of colored porcelain are popular. Colored porcelain can be divided into underglaze color and overglaze color. Under-glaze color refers to painting under the glaze, that is, after painting on the carcass, it is covered with a colorless and transparent glaze and fired at a high temperature of about 1300℃. Its characteristics are smooth and soft color, light and elegant, and the underglaze color is not easy to wear and change color. However, because the pigments of underglaze color need to be fired at high temperature, there are not many pigments that can withstand high temperature, so their varieties are far less than underglaze color. Under-glaze color was first created in Changsha kiln in Tang Dynasty. After the Song and Yuan Dynasties, many new varieties appeared, including blue and white and underglaze red. The glaze is painted on the burnt porcelain and then fired in the kiln. Because the baking temperature is not high, many pigments can withstand this temperature, so the colors are extremely rich. However, because it is decorated on the glaze, the color of the glaze is easy to fade and change color after rubbing or contacting with acid and alkali. Overglaze color was first created in Cizhou Kiln in Song Dynasty, formerly known as "Song Red and Green Color". By the Ming dynasty, the production of monochrome and multicolor on glaze had developed. After entering the Qing Dynasty, there were many innovations in glaze color, such as antique color, enamel color and pastel color.

The underglaze blue-and-white porcelain and underglaze red in Yuan Dynasty are very distinctive. Jingdezhen, the capital of porcelain, rose in the Yuan Dynasty, and blue and white flowers became famous all over the world. Blue and white is a kind of underglaze porcelain painted with cobalt salt metal pigment, which is made of only one color and fired at a high temperature. The process is relatively simple, so it is widely used in porcelain decoration. Due to the different shades and levels of colors, the artistic effect of blue and white is as simple and elegant as folk blue calico, rich and unified, and is widely loved by people. Since the Yuan Dynasty, it has become the main variety of China ceramics. Most of the blue and white decorative themes are traditional ink paintings, which are bright and elegant and have great charm; Influenced by operas and novels at that time, there were also historical figures and novel legends. Under-glaze red is named after its red under-glaze color. It was originally a natural glaze effect and later became an artificial decoration variety. The red color in the glaze is gorgeous and the atmosphere is warm, which conforms to the traditional appreciation habits of our country and has been popular since it was fired in the Yuan Dynasty. Blue and white underglaze red is commonly known as "blue and white with purple", that is, between blue and white ornamentation, fruits and stamens are coated with copper red. It is one of the outstanding representatives of Jingdezhen porcelain in Yuan Dynasty, and is famous for its gorgeous colors. Because of the difficulty in firing, it has always been regarded as a rare variety of ancient porcelain in China.

In the Ming Dynasty, there was a new breakthrough in porcelain-making technology. The rotating blank of ceramic lathe replaced the rotating blank of bamboo knife, and the dipping glaze was replaced by blowing glaze, which greatly improved the quality and quantity of porcelain. Coupled with the development of economy and transportation, a large number of official kilns and folk kilns were burned in the Ming Dynasty to meet the needs of court enjoyment, daily use and export. After the Ming dynasty, porcelain was mainly white porcelain, which opened up a broad world for the decoration of ceramic handicrafts. Jingdezhen is still the center of porcelain making in China. In addition, Zhejiang Longquan celadon, Fujian Dehua white porcelain and Jiangsu Yixing purple sand pottery are also famous at home and abroad. Among them, Dehua white porcelain is the most distinctive with Buddha statue porcelain carving; Purple sand pottery is named after purple sand mud and wins by modeling. Tea sets made of purple sand pottery make tea drinkers fondle admiringly.

There are many kinds of glazed ceramics in the Qing Dynasty, such as red glaze in Kangxi period (1662- 1722), jasper glaze in Yongzheng period, rouge water, and the birth of a thin tire as white as snow dew (1723- 1735), and Qianlong period (. In painting, antique, pastel and enamel are of high level. Antique is an important variety in Kangxi period, which inherited the colorful techniques of Ming Dynasty, with rich colors and distinct layers. Pastel began in the reign of Kangxi and was the most developed in the reign of Yongzheng. Its main features are soft and elegant colors and delicate brushwork. By the middle of the Qing Dynasty, western decorative arts had spread to China and began to use foreign colors. Enamel color first appeared in Kangxi period, and imported raw materials were used for the first time, also known as "foreign porcelain". During the Yongzheng period, it was already possible to burn raw materials by yourself. During Qianlong period, the production of enamel reached its peak. Enamel porcelain tires are produced in Jingdezhen and transported to Beijing for painting and secondary firing. Its color is crystal clear, its texture is thick, and it has a convex feeling when used as decoration. In addition to Jingdezhen, the firing center, the production of ceramics in the Qing Dynasty was almost all over the country, and the products were exported to many countries in the world in addition to the demand of the ruling and opposition parties. The development of ceramics in Ming and Qing Dynasties had a great influence on China ceramics today.