What Is The History Of Ceramic In China?

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• What Is The History Of Ceramic In China?

What Is The History Of Ceramic In China?

The history of ancient Chinese ceramics is very long, There are many fine works in the past dynasties. I will give you a detailed description of the history of Chinese ceramics, so that you can have a clearer understanding of the history of ancient ceramics.

The Concept Of Ceramics

Ceramic is a general term for pottery and porcelain. The utensils made of clay are called pottery, and the utensils made of china clay are called porcelain. All utensils made from clay and porcelain clay through a series of technological processes are called ceramics.

Earliest Pottery And Porcelain

So far, the earliest pottery discovered in my country is the pottery excavated at the Xianrendong site in Wannian, Jiangxi, 8,800 years ago. The earliest porcelain was invented in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, and it has a long history of more than 4,000 years.

Ancient Ceramics

In the middle and late Neolithic period, the types of pottery gradually increased, from clay or sand-filled pottery to gray pottery, black pottery, painted pottery and white pottery. Neolithic pottery, as well as many painted patterns, these painted geometric patterns, animals or human figures have high artistic value and appreciation value.

Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties

The ceramic varieties of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties can be roughly divided into gray pottery, white pottery, printed pottery and so on. The utensils of this period were mainly daily utensils, such as beans, tripods, li, goblet and so on.

Primitive porcelain also appeared around the middle of the Shang Dynasty. Original porcelain is more durable and easier to clean than pottery. Moreover, the craftsmanship of the original porcelain has gradually improved over time, laying a solid foundation for the development of porcelain in the future.

Qin and Han Dynasties

In the Qin and Han dynasties, muddy grey pottery was mainly used, but the application scope of pottery was gradually expanded, which also reflected a higher artistic level. For example, the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shihuang Mausoleum, which shocked the world, are typical representatives of advanced pottery craftsmanship at that time. In addition, pottery for construction has also been vigorously developed, such as various portrait bricks, etc., which all represent the beauty that the ancients advocated in this period.

Han Dynasty

The word "porcelain" began to appear in Chinese characters in the Han Dynasty. The pottery of the Han Dynasty has a generous and thick shape, and the shape of many utensils is very similar to that of bronze ware. Porcelain of this period was one of the most important household utensils in the daily life of the ancients, and was widely used in various fields, such as study utensils, funeral utensils and so on.

Three Kingdoms, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties

During the Three Kingdoms, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the ceramic industry in the south of the Yangtze River developed rapidly, and famous kiln sites such as Yue Kiln appeared. The utensils at that time were exquisitely crafted and exquisite in shape, which were comparable to precious gold and silver utensils, and were also the daily necessities preferred by the royal family at that time.

Sui and Tang Dynasties

Although the Sui Dynasty has a short history, it has made amazing achievements in the firing of porcelain, and both celadon and white porcelain have been well developed.

In the Tang Dynasty, the white porcelain from the Xing kiln in the north and the celadon from the Yue kiln in the south represented the highest artistic achievement in the porcelain making industry, and were also called "Southern Green and North White". After the Tang Dynasty, there were frequent wars in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and the situation was turbulent, but the ceramics industry in this period has further developed, among which the most influential are Wu Yue's secret-color porcelain and the legendary wood kiln.

Song Dynasty

The Song Dynasty was an important stage in the history of the development of Chinese porcelain. There are many famous kilns in Song Dynasty, such as the five famous kilns (Ru kiln, Guan kiln, Ge kiln, Jun kiln, Ding kiln), Jingdezhen kiln, Longquan kiln, Yaozhou kiln, Cizhou kiln, Yue kiln, Jian kiln, etc. Unique artistic style.

Yuan Dynasty

Compared with the Song Dynasty, the porcelain industry in the Yuan Dynasty declined a lot, but there were also new breakthroughs in the porcelain industry during this period, such as the emergence of the world-famous blue and white porcelain and red underglaze porcelain. All these have played a good beginning for the development of porcelain in Ming and Qing dynasties.

Ming Dynasty

The porcelain before the Ming Dynasty was mainly celadon, and after the Ming Dynasty, it was mainly white. The successful firing of white-glazed porcelain and single-color glazed porcelain with copper as a colorant made the porcelain of the Ming Dynasty more colorful. For example, the "doucai" in the Chenghua period and the five colors in the Jiajing and Wanli periods are the treasures of our country's magnificent cultural relics.

Qing Dynasty

During the three dynasties of Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty, the economy was prosperous, the country was prosperous and the people were safe, and the development of porcelain has reached its peak. The experience of the previous dynasties, the unique natural raw materials in Jingdezhen and the careful management of the pottery officials have made the porcelain craftsmanship of the Qing Dynasty reach a state that has never been seen before and never came after. The plain three-colored colors of the Kangxi period, the five-colored colors of the Yongzheng period, and the pastel and enamel colors of the Qianlong period are all well-known boutiques.