Chapter 15 Section 4: The Hometown of Ceramics

Chinese ceramics include porcelain and pottery, referred to as ceramics.Among them, porcelain is one of the ancient Chinese inventions. my country is known as the "country of porcelain". The original meaning of the word "China" in English is porcelain, which can prove that China is the hometown of porcelain.Chinese ceramics have had a profound impact on human civilization. According to archaeological data, Chinese pottery began in the Yangshao culture period of the Neolithic Age. Pottery was found in the Banpo Village site, Majiayao and Qijia cultural sites in Xi'an, about 5,000-7,000 years ago.According to the "Book of Zhou": "Shen Nong made pottery", "Historical Records" records: "The Yellow Emperor ordered Ning to be Tao Zheng", that is to say, the establishment of a pottery official, until the Eastern Han Dynasty, there were only pottery for thousands of years, and there was no firing. In recent years, porcelain fragments from the Eastern Han Dynasty have been found in cultural relics unearthed in Shangyu, Zhejiang Province, which confirms that at least China began to have porcelain in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Chinese porcelain flourished in the Tang and Song dynasties.The main varieties are celadon, white porcelain and colored porcelain.Celadon reached a mature stage in the Tang Dynasty, and Yue Kiln (in present-day Yuyao, Zhejiang Province) was the most famous, while white porcelain was best known in Xing Kiln (present-day Lincheng, Hebei).In the Song Dynasty, porcelain collected the great achievements of the previous generation and made great progress.Celadon includes Ru Kiln (now Linru, Henan), Guan Kiln (now Kaifeng, Henan), Longquan Kiln (now Longquan, Zhejiang), Ge Kiln (now Longquan, Zhejiang), Jun Kiln (now Yu County, Henan), Yaozhou Kiln (now Shaanxi Tong White porcelain has Ding kiln (now Quyang, Hebei), shadow celadon has Jingdezhen kiln (now Jiangxi Jingdezhen), black porcelain has Jian kiln (now Fujian Jianyang).After the Ming Dynasty, Jingdezhen became a porcelain center, and various glazed and painted porcelains continued to innovate and develop.Especially in the Xuande period (AD 1426-1435) and Chenghua period (AD 1465-1487) of the Ming Dynasty, it was the heyday of Chinese blue and white porcelain production.At this time, Chinese porcelain was exported in large quantities to Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, Arabia and Europe, even as far as Zimbabwe and the Federation of South Africa.Up to now, there are various Chinese porcelains from the Song, Yuan and Ming and Qing Dynasties in European and West Asian museums. The Tehran Museum alone has 805 treasures, which shows the great influence.As for the Europeans mastering the production of white porcelain and painting techniques, it was after the secret method of porcelain making became known to the world. For example, the production of white porcelain in Britain began in the second half of the 19th century.

Among the most famous pottery crafts in China, the glazed pottery "Tang Sancai" painted with lead yellow, green, blue and other colors on the white ground of colorless glaze in the Tang Dynasty and the Yixing purple sand pottery that emerged in the late Ming Dynasty can be said to be the best. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, with the decline of the country, political corruption, and economic depression, China's ceramic production gradually shrank and stagnated.After the Republic of China, there were years of domestic wars, and the vigorous dumping of Oriental porcelain caused the Chinese ceramic industry to wither and collapse.Between the two world wars, the porcelain industry flourished and fell into disuse.After the founding of the People's Republic of China, China's ceramic production has entered a new period of development. The country has established modern ceramic research institutes and ceramic schools, intending to catch up with foreign porcelain, deliberately innovate, carry forward the tradition of famous Chinese porcelain, and make my country's ceramic production and export volume rank first in the world. top of the list.

Famous products of Chinese ceramics include Jingdezhen blue and white porcelain, blue and white exquisite porcelain, pastel porcelain, thin body porcelain, underglaze color in Liling, Hunan, spray color, magnolia porcelain in Tangshan, Hebei, craft porcelain in Foshan, Longquan porcelain in Zhejiang, creamy yellow porcelain in Zibo, Ru porcelain , Jun Porcelain and Yixing Zisha pottery and tea sets. Porcelain was developed from pottery.The green tire is transparent, fully baked, dense in structure, hard and firm, and strong in impact resistance.There are many patterns and tricks, which have both artistic value and strong practicality.From the point of view of decoration methods, it is generally divided into overglaze color and underglaze color.On-glaze coloring is to glaze the mud body first, then paint flowers (or decals) after firing white porcelain, and then calcined at 800 degrees, and the patterns are on the surface of the glaze.Underglaze color, the high-temperature pigment made of metal elements is first painted on the blank, and then coated with a thin layer of glaze, which is fired at a high temperature of 1300 degrees, and the patterns are covered by glaze.

my country's porcelain production is widely distributed, while the distribution of high-grade daily-use porcelain is concentrated in Jiangxi, Hunan, Guangdong, Hebei, Shandong, Fujian, Liaoning, and Sichuan.Especially Jingdezhen in Jiangxi, Liling in Hunan, Tangshan in Hebei, Foshan in Guangdong and Zibo in Shandong are famous hometowns of porcelain. Jingdezhen Porcelain Jingdezhen in Jiangxi Province is the ancient porcelain capital of our country and has always been known as the world porcelain town.During the reign of Zhenzong Jingde in the Northern Song Dynasty (1004-1007 A.D.), the Jingde Imperial Kiln was established, and the words "Jingde Nianzhi" were required to be printed on each piece of porcelain, so it became the national porcelain production center.Jingdezhen porcelain in the Ming Dynasty was famous overseas, and entered its heyday in the Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong years of the Qing Dynasty.Ci kilns are spread all over, the level of craftsmanship has been greatly improved, and the variety of designs and colors is dizzying.

Contemporary Jingdezhen porcelain is "a collection of famous porcelains from past dynasties".People praise the porcelain here as "white as jade, bright as a mirror, thin as paper, and sound like a chime".There are five famous porcelains, namely blue-and-white porcelain, blue-and-white exquisite porcelain, pastel porcelain, colored glaze porcelain, and thin-bodied porcelain. Blue and white porcelain belongs to underglaze porcelain.The so-called blue and white is made by using a simple cyan color material containing cobalt oxide to paint the pattern on the white porcelain blank, and then coating it with a layer of transparent white glaze, which is fired once at a high temperature of 1300 degrees.Blue and white porcelain renders clear and bright blue and white on the white body. The color is verdant and green, and the blue and white complement each other.

Blue-and-white exquisite porcelain is based on blue-and-white porcelain, plus exquisite carving techniques, it can be described as a unique pearl in blue-and-white porcelain.It carefully carves holes of different shapes on the porcelain body, and then paints it many times. After high-temperature roasting, it becomes an exquisite blue-and-white porcelain that is green, transparent, and crystal-clear like jade. In 1984, the Wanyu brand blue and white exquisite table tea set produced in Jingdezhen won the National Gold Award and caused a sensation when it was exhibited in the United States. Pastel porcelain evolved from five colors (ancient colors) during the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty.Pastels, mostly heavy colors of traditional Chinese painting, have strong rendering power.After being decorated with line drawings and outlined with thin lines, various colors are covered on it. After being fired in the kiln, slightly protruding color layers are formed on the white porcelain surface. The picture is vivid, bright and fascinating, just like a The traditional Chinese paintings are displayed on the white porcelain, and the colorful colors will never fade. They are the treasures of Jingdezhen porcelain and are exported to more than 120 countries and regions.

Color glazed porcelain is the most outstanding traditional art porcelain in Jingdezhen porcelain.It uses metal oxides and various natural ores as coloring agents to paint on the porcelain body. After careful roasting, the colors are colorful, bright and gorgeous, the red glaze is deep, the plain glaze is elegant, the yellow glaze is clear, and the color lasts for thousands of years. Arts and crafts exhibition porcelain. Thin-bodied porcelain, Jingdezhen thin-bodied porcelain Zhongying celadon is the most famous.The degree of porcelain is high, although the green body is thin, the strength is still extremely high, and the percussion can produce crisp sounds and a sense of transparency. Often the preface of the porcelain body on the front can distinguish strokes and colors, just like thin cicada wings It is a light and beautiful handicraft treasure.Its production process is complicated and delicate, and it needs to go through 40 processes from batching, blank making, blank trimming, glazing, painting, and firing.The blank trimming process is highly skilled, from rough repair, fine repair, and intensive repair, repeated more than 10 times, and the 213mm thick blank is trimmed into an eggshell.The entire production process of thin-bodied porcelain requires "seventy-two hands, and then it can be made into a ware", so that it can be so ingenious and unparalleled in the world.At present, there are more than 50 varieties of thin-bodied porcelain, and its thinness, gloss, and whiteness have reached unprecedented levels, and it is known as a wonderful boutique in the world's porcelain circle.

Tangshan Porcelain Tangshan City, Hebei Province is the porcelain capital of northern China, with a history of more than 500 years.The porcelain produced is famous for its exquisite workmanship, fine quality, bright colors, novel styles and conformity to the trend of the times.It has a complete range of designs and colors, more than 3,000 kinds, and its first-class rate and complete set rate are among the best in the country.The traditional famous porcelain is high-grade white bone ash porcelain, which is named after it contains animal bone ashes.This kind of porcelain has a smooth glaze, elegant and generous decoration, white as snow and delicate as jade, and its price is four to six times higher than that of ordinary porcelain in the international market. It is an art treasure in the porcelain forest.There are more than 600 kinds of Tangshan porcelain tea sets, tableware, spray-painted magnolia porcelain and various art porcelains exported to more than 50 countries and regions.

Cizhou Porcelain Cizhou, now named Cixian, belongs to the Handan area of ​​Hebei.As early as the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Cizhou ancient kiln produced exquisite Jiabi celadon, and it is one of the earliest celadon producing areas in my country.The famous white-glazed black-flower painted porcelain was produced in the Tang and Song dynasties.Due to the flooding of the Zhang River in the Yuan Dynasty, the kilns were gradually moved to Pengcheng County, Hebei Province.At the end of the Ming Dynasty, there were many porcelain kilns in Pengcheng, and there was a grand occasion of "Thousands of miles in Pengcheng, making daily progress in gold", reflecting the prosperity brought about by the marketing of folk daily-use ceramics.The porcelain produced in this area is characterized by the obvious contrast of black and white patterns and colors, and the patterns are full of free and unrestrained, rough and vigorous style.Using sketching techniques to depict birds, animals, flowers, insects, birds and various characters in daily life reflects the bold folk customs in the north.The famous ivory porcelain, white with yellow inside, inherits the technique of ancient porcelain in the Song Dynasty, with strict composition, smooth lines, elegant and magnificent, outstanding image and antique flavor.

Ru Porcelain Ru Porcelain refers to a kind of ancient famous porcelain produced in Linru County, Henan Province."Ru Kiln" in Linru County in Song Dynasty was one of the famous kilns at that time.Ru porcelain has a unique style, "the glaze melts like cream but does not flow, is thick but sounds like a chime, bright but not dazzling".There are small dots under the glaze, just like the skin of a handsome pear, with vertical and horizontal hidden lines on the glaze surface, just like the marks left by crab claws, and some cracks on the glaze surface, which are very similar to sesame flowers, so there is the name of "pear skin crab claw sesame flowers". Compliments.The patterns of Ru porcelain mostly use flowers, plants, birds and birds, and the images are vivid and lively, full of strong life atmosphere.At present, there are many kinds of products, the most precious one is the blue porcelain called "Sunshine after Rain", and there are also three famous colors: the simple and elegant gray blue, the soft and elegant pink green, and the solemn and solemn green shrimp. Yu County Jun Porcelain Jun Porcelain was produced in Shenhou (houhou) Town, Yu County, Henan Province, and it got its name because of the ancient Jun Terrace that commemorated the princes of the Xia Yu Conference.The firing of Jun porcelain began in the Tang Dynasty and flourished in the Song Dynasty. Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty (reigned 1101-1125 A.D.) decided that Jun porcelain was an imperial product, and private collections were not allowed, so it became a rare treasure handed down by the court of later generations.Because the firing skills are on the verge of being lost, the Jun porcelain products handed down from Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties are invaluable, and are regarded as rare treasures by Chinese and foreign antique dealers and collectors. The firing of Jun wares is extraordinary and different from ordinary porcelain kiln techniques.Only the same off-white glaze is coated on the porcelain body without drawing any patterns. When the porcelain body is fired in the kiln, the glaze shows a colorful artistic effect. The phenomenon of "kiln transformation" is known as the "flower of fire art" in the firing process of Jun porcelain.For this unique "kiln transformation" phenomenon, after various explorations by contemporary scientists, it is believed that the opacity glaze used in Jun porcelain contains 0.33% copper oxide, and the change of Jun glaze is the result of the reduction reaction of copper oxide in carbon monoxide.The "kiln change" color of utensils is not only related to the internal factors of raw materials, fuel, glaze, furnace temperature and furnace location, but also closely related to external natural conditions such as season, climate and wind direction. In 1956, the Chinese Jun Porcelain Kiln was re-ignited and reappeared in splendor.The body of Jun porcelain is fine and dense, the sound of hitting is round, crisp and pleasant, the glaze is colorful, the shape is simple and generous, and the concept is ingenious and unique.The famous Jun porcelain has different colors, the famous ones are rose purple, grape purple, begonia red, chicken blood red, cinnabar red, emerald green, sky blue moon white, etc.; Magnificent and changeable colors such as redness.The ancients described the beauty and elegance of Jun Porcelain as "the setting sun turns purple and green into haze".At present, there are more than 300 kinds of antique Jun porcelain, display Jun porcelain and daily Jun porcelain produced, which are famous all over the world. Pottery is made of clay and fired at high temperature. The body is opaque and can be divided into two types: glazed or unglazed, including black pottery, red pottery, painted pottery, etc.The terracotta warriors and horses from the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor in Shaanxi, unearthed in China, are rare masterpieces of ancient pottery making techniques. Pottery vessels have been the most commonly used objects by the people since ancient times.The most famous ones in China today are Yixing purple sand pottery, Shiwan art pottery, Zibo and Handan flower glaze art pottery, etc., too numerous to mention.