Chapter 4 Section 3 The Appearance of Primitive Porcelain

As early as the Neolithic Age, pottery had been widely used and highly developed.In the Shang Dynasty, due to the use of bronze tools, various handicrafts were further developed, and the pottery industry was no exception.At that time, regardless of nobles or commoners, pottery was still the main daily utensil; in addition, pottery was also commonly used for burial.In terms of pottery quality, the pottery of the Shang Dynasty mainly includes sand and clay. Storage basins, jars, large mouth Zun, etc.The surface color is mainly gray, and many shots are printed with Jomon.A pottery workshop site in the middle of the Shang Dynasty was discovered on Minggong Road, Zhengzhou, Henan. 14 circular pottery kilns and more than 10 house foundations were found within an area of ​​about 1,400 square meters. Tools such as pottery beaters and pottery impression molds, etc.

On the basis of the highly developed pottery industry, primitive porcelain appeared in the Shang Dynasty, which became an important part of ancient Chinese bronze culture.The original mid-Shang Dynasty porcelain statue unearthed in Erligang, Zhengzhou, Henan, has a wide mouth, narrow neck, folded shoulders, round bottom, and fine checkered patterns printed on the shoulders and abdomen.It is 11.5 cm high and 10.3 cm in diameter.The tire is blue-gray, delicate and hard, and it is made of kaolin through laboratory tests, and a thin layer of light yellow-green glaze is applied on it.The firing temperature is about 1200°C. It has basically been sintered, the texture is hard, and the water absorption is weak. It shows that as early as the Shang Dynasty more than 3,000 years ago, China had invented porcelain, which is a major contribution of ancient Chinese people to world civilization.

In the late Shang Dynasty, white pottery with engraved patterns appeared again, which was also made of kaolin clay, and the firing temperature was above 1000 °C.For example, the engraved white pottery bean unearthed in Zhengzhou has a large mouth, a shallow plate, a short and thick handle, the belly of the plate is carved with cloud and thunder patterns, and the handle is carved with circular scroll patterns.With a height of 13 cm and a diameter of 22.5 cm, it is an exquisite arts and crafts.In addition, there were a small amount of hard pottery in the Shang Dynasty, including jars and urns.