History of Traditional Ceramics

Wannian Immortal Cave, located in Dayuan Township, Wannian County, Jiangxi Province, is an ancient cultural site of the Neolithic Age 14,000 years ago. From the point of view of the existing archaeological data, it is China's first discovery of the transition from the Paleolithic Age to the Neolithic Age of human activities and cultural relics, and its unearthed cultivated rice and pottery, 10,000 years ago, is now known to the world's earliest age of the remains of cultivated rice and one of the primitive pottery. The earliest colored pottery originated in the Yellow River Basin, especially in the Jing River and Wei River in Shaanxi and eastern Gansu. The first phase of the Didiwan culture in eastern Gansu, which was not only more regular in vessel shape but also painted with simple decorations, was one of the earliest colored pottery cultures in the world. Pottery wheel technology had already appeared in this period, and pottery-making had become a specialized technology. The colored pottery of the Half-slope Culture was slightly later than that of the first phase of the Dadiwan Culture, and its decorations were slightly more complex, with geometric patterns dominating. In the Miaodigou culture centered on the border area of Shaanxi, Henan and Shanxi provinces, the pattern of colored pottery was more varied, reflecting deformed animal images with curved lines and strong slanting lines of dynamics. Fish, birds, pigs and human beings themselves, which are common in daily life, were used as decorative patterns. All of these motifs are vividly depicted and well laid out, making them masterpieces of primitive painting and reliable image data for the study of the history of Chinese painting.

The Majiayao culture, which is about 4,000 years old, is a branch of the Ancient Qiang group that developed from the Half-slope culture. The other two clades associated with it are the Hanshan culture and the Mafang culture, another glorious period after the Longshan culture. The ceramics of the Majiayao culture type have a polished surface, which is smooth and well-proportioned, and are decorated with black monochrome colors. Decorative patterns to the full of the long, in bowls, plates, bowls, such as the inside of the open mouth of the object, are also painted with patterns. Ancient people, cave dwelling wild place, life in the center of the work around the fishing and hunting diet, so the initial urgent need for the invention of kettle urns and the like. Ceramics on the emergence of decorative, indicating that the level of human productivity has improved greatly, to solve the problem of fruitfulness outside, there is still room, so people began to meet the minimum needs outside, the pursuit of beauty performance.

Hexi corridor around the horse factory type colored pottery, the shape is generally smaller, some vessels left on the through the system of small holes, easy to carry to reflect the economic situation of this region half-farming half-pastoral. While in the semi-mountain colored ceramics appeared on the seed sowing humanoid motifs, indicating the development of agriculture and the progress of people's creativity.

In the primitive society, the text is not yet perfect and mature. The pattern image is highly intuitive and had iconic and decorative properties at that time, so the study of colored ceramic patterns will also provide corroboration for the study of ancient writing. Since ancient times, China has been a multi-ethnic country, in the primitive period, the clan tribes are more complicated, in the specific production conditions formed a unique aesthetic demand for cultural characteristics, they each have a representative of the iconic image of the clan culture, but also produces a spiritual cohesion of the force can not be underestimated. With the changes of clan culture, pottery decoration also appeared different forms of content. Early mankind in the process of making pottery, the search for raw materials and the use of inexperience, there are also great limitations. In the use of fire is not mature enough. So the texture of the ceramics made is loose. In the middle and late Neolithic period, the variety of pottery began to increase, from clay or sandwiched pottery to gray pottery, black pottery, colored pottery and white pottery. In addition, for the purpose of decoration or quality improvement, white and red pottery coats were created, as well as colored materials using Fe2O3 (black) and MnO2 (red) as coloring agents. In the forming process, the creation and residence gradually perfected a number of means such as wheel, molding, surface polishing, thin tire forming, patting and printing decorations. The primitive firing conditions are relatively simple, which makes the early pottery body is mostly reddish brown. This is because in the firing process, a large amount of air mixed into the formation of a strong oxidizing flame, so that the iron oxide component in the clay red, yellow, coupled with the raw materials in the AL2O3 is low, the amount of flux is high, but also on the formation of the pottery red color has a significant impact.

The ancient period of ceramic firing technology information, so far there is no way to find, but from the existing information, may be in the early Neolithic era is using firewood on the ground with campfire direct firing, this method is still in many remote and backward areas are used, collectively referred to as the "kiln firing pottery". The kiln type of Yishao culture is basically horizontal and vertical cave type, excavated from the mud, fueled by firewood, no chimney, the temperature inside the kiln is more uniform, heat loss is small, the firing temperature can reach 1000 degrees. From the Longshan culture period later, the general use of vertical cave kiln, by the fire chamber, fire road, kiln room composed of three parts, kiln room diameter of about 1 meter, the burning of air supply is more adequate, so that the firewood and grass fully burned, the flame can be along the bottom of the kiln into the kiln room uniformly, so that the kiln temperature increases, up to 1050 degrees high temperature, but also for the later emergence of the steamed buns kiln, inverted flame kiln has laid the necessary foundation. Throughout the technology and art of Chinese colored pottery, it lasted 4,800 years. In fact, the upper limit of its age is still a difficult to prove the mystery, with the archaeological excavation work eight continuously, may also appear different new understanding. As far as the existing information is concerned, it can be said that the primitive pottery is not only the treasure of China's ancient art, but also occupies an important place in the history of the world's culture and art, which is the valuable cultural heritage of the whole mankind, and an incomparably brilliant chapter in the history of human civilization. Ceramic Culture of Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties

The pottery pieces and pots dug out from the ruins of Yinxu in the Shang Dynasty include many kinds of styles, including gray, black, red, colored and white pottery, as well as hard pottery with glaze, and the decorations, symbols and words on these pottery are closely related to the oracle bone inscriptions and the green wares of the Yin and Shang Dynasties. The high cost of greenware could only be enjoyed by the aristocracy, and pottery could only be used for all kinds of living vessels of the general public. Therefore, it can be understood that the Shang Dynasty pottery production process has also been the general development of hard pottery with glaze has appeared in this period, glaze green and brownish-yellow, the tire is relatively hard, grayish-white.

Pottery at this time has not been limited to contain containers, a wider range of applications, can be roughly divided into daily necessities, construction, martyrdom, sacrificial rites. The court for pottery work is also very important. Qin and Han Dynasty - Ancient buildings were mostly constructed of wood, which was not easy to survive for a long time. Therefore, some great buildings, such as the Afang Palace in Qin Dynasty and the Weiyang Palace in Han Dynasty, could not be preserved in their entirety, but relics such as tiles and bricks can still be found in the remaining ruins, which can give a glimpse of the scale of the ancient buildings.

Tile Dang

The frontmost tile of the eaves is the Tile Dang, which carries a patterned hanging round block. The pattern of the wadang is beautifully designed, and the font is flowing and extremely varied, with cloud-head patterns, geometric patterns, taotie patterns, text patterns, animal patterns, and so on, making it an exquisite work of art.

Han bricks

The carvings on Han bricks are all-encompassing, complex and beautiful. Whether it is painted or relief images are lively, flexible lines; the stories expressed therein are microcosm of society at that time, in Sichuan Province, Pengshan found in the Han tombs, there is a kind of Xieng Khouang bricks are designed to build tombs or tunnels used in the structure seems to have been known to apply the physics of the cylindrical hollow reasoning.

Since ancient times, China's society advocates generous burials, pottery can be stored for a long time, become the best burial goods, there are models of premises, musical instruments, birds and animals, as well as human figurines, the Qin and Han Dynasties Terracotta Warriors and horses are the most famous, and recently unearthed one after another (animal) for the importance of archaeologists.

Terracotta Warriors

Terracotta Warriors made of molded plastic combination of methods, first made of pottery molds for the first tire, and then covered with a layer of fine clay for the processing of engraving and coloring, some of which is the first burned and then connected, some of which is the first connected and then burned, the fire is uniform, color and lustre is simple, hardness is very high.

Lead-glazed pottery

Lead-glazed pottery is an innovation of the Han Dynasty pottery, yellow, brown, green and other colors, green glaze is more popular, with lead as the basis of the glaze, plus a little bit of oxidation can be obtained on the greenish green, with a low melting point of only burned Celsius seven hundred to eight hundred degrees, and must be able to be thin evenly hung on the tire.

In the south is also abundant in green glazed pottery, high fire, hard glaze, is also the beginning of the later development of celadon. The middle and late Eastern Han Dynasty had celadon, the use of "dragon kiln" to raise the kiln temperature, but also choose the general use of porcelain kaolin clay. The Three Kingdoms, the Two Jin Dynasties, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties lasted from 200 to 581 AD. In 200 A.D., Cao Pi abolished Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty and made himself king, with the state name of "Wei"; the next year, Liu Bei established the Shu Han regime in Sichuan Province; in 229 A.D., Sun Quan claimed the title of emperor in Jianye (now Nanjing), with the state name of "Wu", which is known as the "Three Kingdoms". The history is called "Three Kingdoms". After the destruction of Shu by Wei in 263 A.D., there were many years of war and chaos, and the situation of five hu and sixteen states appeared in the north. After the demise of Western Jin Dynasty. Many gentry and scholars crossed the river to the south, and successively established four dynasties, namely Song, Qi, Liang and Chen, known as the "Southern Dynasty", and the Northern Dynasty of the same time in the north, collectively known as the "Northern and Southern Dynasties". During the Three Kingdoms and the Two Jin dynasties, the ceramics industry in Jiangnan developed rapidly, and famous kiln sites such as Yue Kiln, Ou Kiln and Wu Kiln appeared in Xiaoshan, Shangyu and Yuyao successively. The manufactured wares emphasized on quality and fine processing, comparable with gold and silver wares, and became the daily necessities of the famous families at that time.

Eastern Jin and Southern Dynasties period, in Jiangxi, Sichuan, Fujian and other places in the kiln site has developed greatly. But the porcelain kilns around Jiangsu and Zhejiang have shown clear signs of decline, porcelain kilns to reduce the number of lower, simplified decoration, firing slightly rough. This situation has continued until the early Tang Dynasty.

Relatively speaking, the northern part of China's production of porcelain is slightly later. The turmoil of this era so that the Central Plains suffered serious damage, before this, Guanzhong, Central Plains region was China's political, cultural and economic center. The decline of the ceramic industry was inevitable, and the emergence of porcelain production was delayed until the Northern Dynasties period. But this period was a surprise to the emergence of a unique, but also for future generations have far-reaching significance of ceramic varieties, which is white porcelain.

In China, is widely recognized, the true meaning of the emergence of porcelain in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Its body is made of kaolin or china stone and other materials, in 1200oC1300oC high temperature firing, the tire body requires hard, dense, thin and non-absorbent, the tire body outside the cover with a layer of glaze, glaze to be smooth, smooth, do not fall off, peeling. The vast area of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River is rich in raw material resources, but also rich in fuel resources, so the pottery industry in this area is developing rapidly, the emergence of a large number and a wide range of kiln sites. Porcelain origin is commonly known as "kiln", by archaeologists according to ancient literature or field excavations gradually understand. Through the field investigation and excavation, basically clarified some of the main kilns in this period. For example, the Yue kiln, also known as the "Yuezhou kiln", from the Eastern Han Dynasty, until the decline of the Northern Song Dynasty. Its basic branch in Ningbo, Zhejiang, Yuyao, Shaoxing, Xiaoshan area. Its main features are: fine, greenish-gray tire; glaze glistening, with a jade-like texture, deep green glaze, pure color, billet and glaze combined tightly. Tang dynasty poet Lu Guimeng wrote a poem praising "nine autumn wind and dew Yue kiln open, captured a thousand peaks green color to". Ou kiln, in wenzhou area. Its characteristics are: the tire white gray, glaze layer is thin, glaze color light green, high transparency, there are small flakes, easy to fall off. Then there are Hongzhou kilns in Jiangxi, Yuezhou kilns in Hunan, Yixing kilns in Jiangsu and so on. This period of porcelain has replaced part of the pottery, copper, lacquer, and become one of the most important daily life of the people's daily life utensils, is widely used in dining, furnishings, stationery utensils, funerary and so on.

Chinese people drink tea when the habit of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty in the area of Sichuan, the Eastern Han Dynasty when the wind of tea to the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the wind spread rapidly, to the Eastern Jin Dynasty, has become the fashion of the royal family. According to ancient records, the tea drinking methods and methods with today's very different, so the need for some of the different shapes of the utensils, the number of also has a great demand. The research proved that the unique shape of the chicken head pot is a kind of tea, this shape until after the Sui and Tang dynasties no longer have.

Porcelain barn jar is the emergence of the Three Kingdoms and Western Jin Dynasty, it is used for burial goods, so also known as the "soul bottle" or "God Pavilion", by the Eastern Han Dynasty, the development of five cans. This period of the barn canister production fine, complex pile molding, there are figures, birds, animals, pavilions, food has been regarded as the first important materials, so from the Qin and Han dynasties began to give the dead buried food for the deceased to enjoy in the netherworld, at the same time, burial goods also contains a complete set of food processing tools and cooking utensils, to reflect the importance of eating. North and South Dynasty Buddhism flourished, all over the construction of a large number of temples, Buddha stone kiln, the number of monks and nuns soared, with Buddhist colors, meaning of the decorations can be seen everywhere. Such as in the architectural decoration with flying sky, lotus and other iconic patterns. Embodied in ceramics, the most representative is the "Lotus Zun".

Ceramics are also used in a large number of stationery, such as pen holders, water pots, inkstones and so on. The function of the water pot is only to hold the ink grinding water, but the shape is very rich, there are frog-shaped, bird-shaped, rabbit-shaped, cow-shaped and other styles. Ceramic stationery was widely used, and this period of reverence for reading, the promotion of Confucianism has a correlation. The decorative features of this period is relatively obvious, especially in the Three Kingdoms and Western Jin Dynasty Yue kiln is the most prominent. There were often patterns on the wares showing the scenes of life, which were delicately and realistically carved, truly reflecting the social outlook of that period, and also providing evidence for present-day research on architecture, Yindong, dance, religion, animal husbandry and other topics. Some daily necessities such as tigers, candlesticks, oil lamps, water pots on the bold use of exaggerated deformation of animal images, a multi-faceted embodiment of the aesthetic sense of the society at that time, enriching people's spiritual life.

The misty color is the characteristic glaze of the Wei, Jin, and North and South Dynasties, which is the representative of the celadon system, and the white porcelain in the northern region. In addition, brown color was often used to break the single green glaze, making it more lively. This decorative method was widely used because it was simple and easy to apply, widely adapted and more effective. Writing characters on the surface of objects with brown color is another feature of brown color decoration, and this decorative technique flourished in the later Tang and Five Dynasties periods. The form of the script provides reliable information for the study of calligraphy. The Yue kiln Jin porcelain seen today is mostly of superior craftsmanship, with high glaze color, mellow texture and great taste. Due to the level of craftsmanship at the time, the ceramics produced in the glaze color changes in a very rich, greenish green, yellowish or grayish, and glaze composition, firing flame have a great relationship. Although the current technical force is more powerful, but today's imitations are often uniform, dead, lost the signs of the ancients. The modulation of porcelain glaze is also an important factor. Celadon glaze is initially made of porcelain stone mixed with wood ash, weathering degree of poor porcelain stone generally contains a large number of fluxes, commonly used to make glaze, wood ash is the role of the introduction of CaO composition, after high temperature firing and porcelain stone interaction to form calcium glaze. Celadon since the late Eastern Han Dynasty, after the emergence of the Three Kingdoms, the two Jin Dynasty, the North and South Dynasties, in the billet, glaze quality has produced different degrees of improvement, but due to the distribution of ceramic stone raw materials in a wide range of geographic areas, raw material composition content varies, so the glaze color of porcelain in this period and the texture of the larger differences.

Since the southern part of the vast area of less war, the social order is also relatively safe, the Central Plains, a large number of members have gone south, which is not lacking in ceramics industry technicians. The northern region is in a depressed situation, the ceramic industry is not as developed as the Han Dynasty, the use of the kiln is also very little improvement, is still extended to use the round bun kiln. In the south, the kiln has developed greatly, the structure of the dragon kiln was further improved. Kiln bed length of more than ten meters, in order to solve the dragon kiln kiln indoor pumping force, flame speed too fast problem, this period invented to play a role in alleviating the "fire wall", can be more effective in regulating the kiln pumping force and temperature. Tested, this period of porcelain are in the weak reduction flame firing, sintering degree is better, firing temperature up to 1300 degrees or so, reached the quality level of modern porcelain, which is undoubtedly with the improvement of the structure of the kiln and the improvement of firing technology is inseparable. To the Tang Dynasty, porcelain production can be metamorphosed to the realm of maturity, and cross into the real porcelain era. Because the pottery and porcelain of the difference, care about the quality of white hard or translucent, and the biggest key in the temperature of the fire. Although the Han dynasty porcelain, but the temperature is not high, the texture is fragile can only be regarded as the original porcelain, and the development of the Tang dynasty, not only the development of glaze drug maturity, the fire temperature can reach more than 1,000 degrees Celsius, so we say that the Tang dynasty is the real era into the porcelain. The most famous kiln in the Tang dynasty for the Yue kiln and Xing kiln.

Yue kiln

Yue kiln in the south of shaoxing, zhejiang province, mainly manufacturing celadon; Xing kiln in the north of xingtai, hebei province, mainly manufacturing white porcelain. Yue kiln celadon clear as ice, crystal warm jade, the color is green with green and tea green color is similar.

Xing Kiln

The white porcelain produced at the Xing Kiln is characterized by a fine, moist soil, firm and thin walls, and a stable, thick, smooth line.

Tang Sancai

The most important product of the Tang Dynasty was the famous Tang Sancai, which has been widely preferred and collected until today's civilization. Tang Sancai is accompanied by burial pottery, bright colors have yellow, green, green lead glaze, so the name Tang Sancai, but not necessarily every piece of Tang Sancai are three colors, but can use three-color cross-mixed glazing technology to create beautiful flowers, as well as the first in the blanks engraved into a dark pattern, endless variations, colorful.

Tang Sancai was distributed in both Chang'an and Luoyang, with those in Chang'an known as the West Kiln and those in Luoyang known as the East Kiln. The Tang Dynasty was characterized by generous burials, not only for the great officials and nobles, but also for the people, and a trend has been formed.

Tang Sancai many kinds of figures, animals, bowls and plates, water, wine, stationery, furniture, houses, and even pots of ashes and so on. Generally more people love is the horse figurines, some feet gallop, some wandering stand, some neck hissing, are showing a lifelike posture. As for the character modeling of women, civil officials, military generals, Hu terracotta, the king of heaven, according to the characters of the social status and rank, portraying different personalities and characteristics; noblewoman face full of round, combed into a variety of buns, dressed in brightly colored clothing, civil officials polite, warrior just brave, Hu terracotta high deep eyes, the king of heaven, angry eyes of the mighty and majestic, enough for our country's ancient sculpture of the exemplary boutique. Tang Dynasty after the An Shi Rebellion, the national power is declining, Tang after the destruction of Yuan fifty years, faced with the situation of division, the north by the after Liang, after Tang, after the Han, after Jin, after the Zhou, five dynasties have ruled the Yellow River basin. In the south, there existed many regimes such as the former Shu, Wu, ≥, Wu Yue, Chu, Southern Han, Jingnan, Later Shu, Southern Tang, Northern Han, etc., which are known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms in history.

Chai kiln

This period is more famous for the Chai kiln of the Shizong of the latter Zhou Dynasty, to the sky green color, Shizong commented that "after the rain, the cloud breaks down, the color of the future," so there is a "after the rain, the green" of the beauty of the name. Tao Road recorded "green as the sky, bright as a mirror, thin as paper, sound like a chime", can be a little known for its exquisite production.

Secret Kiln

Yue Kiln to the Five Dynasties, once became the Wu Yue Wang Qian's imperial vessels, the courtiers are not allowed to enjoy, and therefore at that time, also known as the "secret kiln", all belong to the manufacture of celadon. Zhao Kuangyin seized power in the latter part of the Zhou Dynasty and established the Song Dynasty with Kaifeng as its capital, historically known as the Northern Song Dynasty. Song Dynasty ceramics of our country's heyday, "Song porcelain" is also known around the world. Ding kiln, Ru kiln, official kiln, brother kiln, jun kiln for the five famous kilns, beautiful shape, elegant and heavy, not only beyond the achievements of previous generations, even if the latter imitation can rarely match.

Ding Kiln

Ding Kiln, also known as the powder Ding, Ding Kiln in today's Quyang County, Hebei Province, the town of Lingshan, the ancient name of Dingzhou, so called Ding Kiln, is the best kiln for the production of white porcelain, following the Xing kiln in the Tang Dynasty.

The glaze of the Ding kiln was divided into North Ding and South Ding, and after the Song family moved south, part of it went to Jingdezhen and part to Jizhou, known as South Ding. Produced in Jingde glaze color like powder, also known as powder Ding. Ding kiln also like persimmon color red Ding, purple purple Ding, black black Ding and so on.

General decorative techniques are scratching, printing, carving, etc. A variety of motifs all-inclusive, the production of fine and delicate, smooth lines, the texture of the tire is firm and fine, creamy white or ivory color, more bowls and plates, tire thin and rounded. In order to avoid distortion of the firing, more cover firing, and then inlaid with metal for the edge.

Ru Kiln

Ru Kiln in LinRu County, Henan Province, is the first famous kiln in the north of the celadon, burned the Imperial Palace of ware, a very short period of time, the number is also small. Ware type is simple, but the glaze color is warm and soft, in the semi-glare state like sheep's milky jade, and intercepted Ding kiln, Yue kiln decorative techniques, the formation of a unique artistic style.

Later in Linru County, known as Linru kiln, which has the word "Fenghua" is the Song Emperor Liu Fei's hall name, some people say it is the later complementary carving.

Jun Kiln

Jun Kiln in Yuxian County, Henan Province, known as Jun Tai in ancient times, called Junzhou in the Ming Dynasty, so named Jun Kiln, not many heirlooms, commented on the ¤ discreetly high.

Jun kiln was founded in the Tang Dynasty, through the Song, Jin to the Yuan Dynasty, the tire is delicate, the glaze color is gorgeous and eye-catching, the variety is too numerous to mention; rose purple, begonia red, eggplant purple, sky blue, rouge, cinnabar, fire red, and kiln change. Ware type to bowl and plate is more, but the most outstanding flower pots.

The bottom of the vessel is engraved with a number of one to ten, according to legend, one, three, five, singular for the red, two, four, six plural for the green, but some people say that the smaller the number of the vessel is the larger, just kiln workers to facilitate the identification of the marks made just.

Official kilns

Official kilns are in the Song Da Guan and political and during the years of Bianliang made, celadon glaze crystal vigilant, cracked or ice flakes, powder green purple mouth iron fixed is its characteristics.

Ge Kiln

Ge Kiln creator for the Zhejiang Province, the Zhang brothers, brother Zhang Sheng a burner for the "Ge Kiln", the younger brother Zhang Sheng two burner for the "Brother Kiln", also known as Longquan Kiln or Zhang Kiln.

Go kiln is mainly characterized by glaze cracks open piece, this crack is due to the glaze and tire shrinkage rate of different sizes are known as caviar pattern crab claw pattern, also known as the hundred set of broken. Glaze color has pinkish green, beige, the glaze appeared in the size of bubbles, porcelain tires were black-brown, the mouth edge shows a brown edge called "purple mouth iron foot".

Longquan kilns

Longquan kilns glaze color verdant, the Northern Song Dynasty, more pinkish green, the Southern Song Dynasty was onion green, there is no open slice in the turn of the vessel, often exposed tires show tire color, glaze is thick and moist, decorative rarely carved, scratched flowers, and popular with appliqué, relief, for example, in the dish often stacked stickers with a double-fish motifs, in the vase stickers with twining branches of peony pattern.

The Song Dynasty porcelain industry flourished, in addition to the above five famous kilns, Pingyang kiln in Pingyang, Shanxi Province, Yaozhou kiln in Yaozhou, Shaanxi Province, Fujian Province, Jian'an Jian kiln, Jiangxi Province, Jizhou kiln, also burned quite good porcelain.

Magnetism Kiln in today's Hebei Province, magnetism County, is the center of North China's large kiln industry, is very much valued by Japan, successive generations have a large number of porcelain sold to Japan, the Japanese people also called porcelain magnetism, there is a reason for it. Yuan Dynasty into the Central Plains for ninety-one years, the porcelain industry than the decline of the Song Dynasty, however, there are new developments in this period, such as the rise of blue and red glaze, colored porcelain a large number of popularity, white porcelain has become the mainstream of the porcelain, glaze white pan blue, led to the development of porcelain after the Ming and Qing dynasties, to get a very high level of achievement.

Pivot Kiln

Yuan dynasty in jingdezhen design official kiln, exquisite production, decorative patterns often have "pivot" two words, and therefore also known as the pivot kiln, jingdezhen gradually formed the national porcelain manufacturing center is also from the beginning of the yuan dynasty.

Cyanite

Cyanite is painted with cobalt on white porcelain fired into a pattern, using only a blue color, but the intensity of the pigment, the level, can show an extremely rich and varied artistic effect. Blue and white simple but gorgeous, both complex and uniform, as blue calico, with simple, simple, elegant features, become the main varieties of porcelain.

Glazed red

Glazed red is oxidized instead of cobalt material, practice and blue and white is underglaze coloring, due to the reduction of snow red, glaze translucent red, so the name glazed red, the Yuan Dynasty, following the Jun kiln after the emergence of another method of expression of the red color, not easy to burn, is a more difficult to burn the porcelain, often grayish-red or dark brown, rather unstable, not much production, even less heirloom. China's pottery development to the Ming Dynasty and entered a new journey, the Ming Dynasty before the porcelain to celadon based, and after the Ming Dynasty to white porcelain-based especially blue and white porcelain into the Ming Dynasty, the main products, and Jingdezhen became the main kiln, the largest scale, has been continued for the Ming and Qing Dynasties five, six hundred years and not decline, described the situation as "daytime white smoke to cover the sky, the night red flame The kiln was the largest in scale and continued to flourish for six centuries during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Yongle Xuande period for the early period of blue and white porcelain, although not as sweet white, off the exquisite, but due to the importation of cobalt material Su mud Bo green, so that this period of blue and white color; artist's artistic training is very high, the use of green material of the scattering of the halo, for the end of the bone floral strokes, resulting in the ink of the interest; some use different thickness on the line, resulting in lively changes, appear more vivid and powerful. Since the Yuan Dynasty, the importation of Islam also brought rich patterns at this time, coupled with the use of Chinese painting, the layout of the content of a clear and bright, feel his majestic simplicity.

Chenghua, Zhengde for the middle of the blue and white porcelain, at this time the Su mud Boqing has been used up, switching to equal green, color pale than the Suqing rich, more no loose halo ink effect, so in addition to the development towards adding color or detailed performance, painting techniques to strive for refinement, fine drawings and even dyeing, coupled with the thin tire of the white porcelain, to achieve the goal of sophistication.

Jiajing, Wanli years for the late blue and white porcelain, back to the use of green, to the Jiajing kilns to bring prosperity, colorful and strong. At this time the production is larger, and by the Dutch ship to Europe.

Wanli years famous five-color, color, become the basis for the development of later generations of colored porcelain, and even Japan's Ivory ancient porcelain is based on the development of this period of color, "Wanli color" will become famous in history. At the same time, there are red and yellow color, blue and yellow flowers, red and blue, yellow and blue five color, red and so on all kinds of color magnet and the kilns of the previous generation, the pattern is more varied, increase many.

Beginning of the Ming Dynasty, kiln sites tend to concentrate in Jingdezhen, whether official kilns or kilns are biased in favor of painted porcelain, Song porcelain before the monochrome glaze is dominated by the Ming Dynasty after the colorful world, porcelain tires also tend to be thin, fine, white request, in the billet to remember the style has also since the beginning of the era, the name of the hall, the name of the people have, so that the study of the evidence to have a more accurate identification.

Cyanite glaze red

Cyanite glaze red collocation phyllotaxis, but also create some innovative works.

Doucai

Chenghua porcelain using Doucai, first traced the outline of the blue and white material, glaze firing, and then add the glaze color, fill in the five colors, increase the gaudy, extremely famous, and became the object of later generations of competition to imitate. Zhengde years using back to the green, light and dark, the tire also owes white less than the Chenghua bowls and dishes and so on more, slag bucket is its unique place. Qing dynasty Chinese porcelain can be said to be the peak. Thousands of years of experience, coupled with the natural raw materials of Jingdezhen, pottery officer's management, the early years of the Qing dynasty, Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong three generations, due to political stability, economic prosperity, the emperor attaches importance to the achievements of porcelain is also very outstanding, the emperor's hobby and advocate, so that the early Qing dynasty porcelain production technology is highly skilled, decorative fine and gorgeous, the achievements of the long history of China's ceramics is the most brilliant.

Ceramic production in the Qing Dynasty, in addition to the official kilns in Jingdezhen as the center, all over the kilns are extremely prosperous and prosperous, and get a lot of achievements, especially the gradual advancement of the Western wind, ceramics export, Western raw materials and technology imported by foreign influence, so that ceramics is more rich and colorful, but also due to mass production and imitation of the wind, the pursuit of painting Academy of the work of the fine and slender, although there is a phenomenal work, but less creativity and flow of artisanal.

Dehua, Fujian Province, white porcelain, white and transparent, the production of Buddha is quite famous. In the middle of the Qing dynasty, export ceramics developed out of the Guangcai, gorgeous.

Pastel

Yongzheng period is the most achievements in pastel, pastel is mainly characterized by soft and light tones, the proportion of fine and neat, it is also known as the "soft color"; the use of white powder to set up a body shape and then color, and dyed into the intensity of the dark and light levels, fresh and penetrating, warm and plain, deep with the meaning of the meaning of the brushwork birds and flowers and a thick It has a deep sense of workmanship and a strong decorative character.

Enamel

The Qianlong period inherited the style of the previous two Qing dynasties, produced a lot of beautiful and exquisite works, and then spared no capital, the pursuit of creativity, the synthesis of a variety of craft techniques, used in ceramics on top of the imitation of a variety of other materials are also many products. The greatest achievement in painting is enamel, the earliest use of imported pigments fired, so also known as "foreign color".

The material used in enamel, color choice crystal, texture thick, used as a decoration, pattern has a slightly convex pile of feeling. Jingdezhen porcelain tires shipped to the court, the order of the Academy of Chemical to be painted, more than "secret games of the inner court, so the decorative painting method is extremely fine, the pursuit of gorgeous, mythical animals Palace breath, plus the Palace of the "Gu Yuexuan" for the style, all of which belongs to the Interior, became known as the Gu Yuexuan porcelain.

Purple sand

Yixing Purple Sand

Yixing Purple Sand to the Qing Dynasty production is greater, the masters, in addition to the manufacture of Yixing pots, daily supplies such as bowls and plates, vases, flower pots, etc., to keep the tire color, ancient, a variety of color pottery are also creative.

Weaving gold

"Weaving gold" is the use of gold wire ditch edge and then fill color, quite characteristic, using Jingde white embryo in Guangzhou with color export, has been passed on to today.

Black porcelain

Boshan, Shandong Province, black porcelain, is a popular household item for northern farmers.

Shiwan plastic

Guangxi Shiwan shaped figures in recent years is very important, glaze color changes, lifelike, especially to the story of the characters, vivid and powerful expression and interesting, for the collector's preference. After the Qianlong, from the Jiaqing until the eve of liberation, that is, from the middle of the 19th century to the end of the 1940s, especially after the opium wars (1840), Chinese society has undergone great changes, the domestic reactionary rule of the increasingly corrupt and foreign capitalism step by step invasion of people, so that China has been reduced to semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, the Chinese porcelain industry by the stagnation and tends to decline.

And Britain, in the 18th century, after the industrial revolution in the 1960s, capitalism is in the ascendant, to the 19th century, Britain's industrial revolution spread to the rest of Europe and North America, factories in general to implement mass production. Europeans since the 18th century made of real hard porcelain, to the 19th century, the progress of industrial technology so that the European ceramic production gradually by the machine instead of craft labor. Ceramics industry has been the rapid development. Especially Britain, Germany, France and other countries of ceramic products, the proportion of the international community is increasing. In the East, Japan's porcelain industry since the beginning of the 20th century, but the development of rapid, after the Second World War, Japan's ceramics have been enough to compete with Britain, Germany, France and other countries.

In this period, the status of Chinese porcelain in international trade is deteriorating, known for producing porcelain in China, and become a large number of foreign porcelain dumping market, although the national porcelain can still be the traditional characteristics of overseas and foreign porcelain to fight for a day, but the number has been greatly reduced, the trend of its decline is, after all, internal and external social realities have decided. To the Sino-Japanese War, due to the expansion of capitalist power and the corruption of the Qing government, Chinese ceramics can not help but in the domestic and foreign markets, China's ceramics industry on the brink of extinction.

Despite this, China's ceramic industry is still tenacious survival. In the late Qing Dynasty, some of the national industrial and commercial enterprises in the Qing government advocated the so-called "revitalization of industry" under the slogan, the Chinese ceramic handicraft industry carried out some reforms, founded a number of new-style porcelain factory.

Before and after the First World War, the European and American imperialist countries are busy with war plunder, temporarily easing the aggression and oppression of China, so China's national industry a little bit of a rise in the new style of national industry porcelain factory, this time there is also a certain degree of development.