Chinese Ceramics Paleolithic Qing Ming Mongol Yuan Song Han Tang Sui Sancai NEW

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Chinese Ceramics: From the Paleolithic Period through the Qing Dynasty by Laurie Barnes and Pengbo Ding.

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DESCRIPTION:  Hardcover with dustjacket.  Publisher: Yale University (2010).  Pages: 608.  Size: 12” x 9¼” x 2” - 8 pounds! A catalogue that offers a historical review of Chinese ceramics covering newly excavated discoveries from the Paleolithic era thousands of years ago to the end of the Qing dynasty in 1911. It offers a fresh perspective in interpreting the oldest and one of the most admired Chinese art forms, from its technological aspects to its aesthetic value.

CONDITION:  NEW MASSIVE (12"x9"x2", 8 pound!) hardcover w/dustjacket. Yale University (2010) 608 pages. Still in publishers wraps. Unblemished and pristine in every respect. Pages are clean, crisp, unmarked, unmutilated, tightly bound, unambiguously unread. Satisfaction unconditionally guaranteed. In stock, ready to ship. No disappointments, no excuses. PROMPT SHIPPING! HEAVILY PADDED, DAMAGE-FREE PACKAGING! Meticulous and accurate descriptions! Selling rare and out-of-print ancient history books on-line since 1997. We accept returns for any reason within 14 days! #8581a.

PLEASE SEE DESCRIPTIONS AND IMAGES BELOW FOR DETAILED REVIEWS AND FOR PAGES OF PICTURES FROM INSIDE OF BOOK.

PLEASE SEE PUBLISHER, PROFESSIONAL, AND READER REVIEWS BELOW.

PUBLISHER REVIEWS: 

REVIEW:  This lavishly illustrated catalogue is a comprehensive historical review of Chinese ceramics covering newly excavated discoveries from the Paleolithic era thousands of years ago to the end of the Qing dynasty in 1911. Throughout China’s history there has been an ongoing practice of invention and innovation in the forms, materials, decorations, and functions of ceramics made in China, both for the domestic market and for its ever-growing trade with foreign markets. The creation of ceramic ware holds a special and very important place among the many arts and inventions that characterize Chinese culture, society, and civilization.

The product of a ten-year collaboration among eminent American, Chinese, and Japanese scholars, Chinese Ceramics offers a new perspective in interpreting the oldest and one of the most admired Chinese art forms, from its technological aspects to its aesthetic value. The volume includes a chapter on Chinese export ceramics that delves into Chinese trade activities and ceramic wares made for export as well as a chapter about the authenticity of Chinese ceramics, discussing issues related to connoisseurship of this Chinese art. As author He Li writes, “Despite the rich variety of Chinese ceramics around the world, no fully illustrated, photographed survey of a complete history has been attempted in English. [This volume] will convey the excitement of encountering these specially chosen examples for the first time.

REVIEW:  Li Zhiyan is senior research fellow at the National Museum of China and former vice president of the Association of Chinese Ancient Ceramics. Virginia L. Bower is an adjunct associate professor at the University of the Arts, Philadelphia. He Li is associate curator of Chinese art, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. David Ake Sensabaugh is the Ruth and Bruce Dayton Curator of Asian Art at the Yale University Art Gallery. Ding Pengbo is research fellow at the National Museum of China. Li Jixian is research fellow at the Chinese Institute of Art and a member of the Chinese Society of Archaeology. Quan Kuishan is professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology, Peking University. Laurie E. Barnes is Elizabeth B. McGraw Curator of Chinese Art at the Norton Museum of Art. Kanazawa Yoh is a curator at the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo. William R. Sargent is an independent scholar and curator, and the former curator of Asian export art at the Peabody Essex Museum.

PROFESSIONAL REVIEWS: 

REVIEW:  Impressive in size and scope, this book is the ultimate reference on Chinese ceramics

REVIEW:  An in-depth overview…of value not only to scholars of Chinese ceramics but to collectors as well. The many full-color illustrations… as well as the very recent scholarship included in the discussions are what will make this book a most valuable addition to any library collection and a standard work for years to come.

REVIEW:  This is the first English-language study of the full range of Chinese ceramic history from the Stone Age to the 20th century that is based on solid archaeological evidence and illustrated with examples, which can be positively dated.

REVIEW:  A most valuable addition to any library collection on Chinese art and very likely a standard work for years to come

READER REVIEWS: 

REVIEW:  Definitive Text for Chinese Ceramics! This volume is the latest in the Culture and Civilization of China Series - a collaboration between Yale University Press and Beijing Foreign Languages Press. For those who are familiar with this series it is quite free ranging in its subject matter, ranging from the classic "Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting" which has become a fixture of Chinese art courses, "Chinese Sculpture", "Chinese Calligraphy", "Chinese Architecture" and a couple of books on Chinese Philosophy. Most of these (excepting the books on philosophy) are all lavishly illustrated coffee table books and aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the subject matter that can be accessible to both the lay reader as well as the expert.

Indeed this book does not disappoint, and I believe that it ranks with the best in the series (with the bar set high by Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting.) It provides a series of strong introductory essays on the various dynastic periods, setting out the historical background and their representative styles in a multifaceted analysis - subject matter, composition, technical breakthroughs in glazing and firing methods. The essays on the Song and Qing Periods are especially good. After reading this one should have a good idea of the characteristics of ceramics of each period, what celadon and blue and white ware are and the characteristics of true porcelain.

This book also has the benefit of showing the best and most representative pieces without being confined to a particular collection, having compiled photos from the collections of the British Museum, the Musee Guimet in Paris, Museum of Asian Art in SF, the Topkapi Palace Museum in Istanbul as well as many University Collections and the latest findings from many provincial museums in China. An additional improvement over Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting in that Li Zhiyan, as editor, has taken pains to maintain a continuity in the format of the essays throughout the books so they can be read separately or more rewardingly as a single narrative, and best of all the language is easy to understand without needing too much technical background or background in Chinese history.

Admittedly, there are several places that the book could have done better, during the early part of the book, when discussing Neolithic pottery the lack of a compelling narrative makes it difficult to keep track of the various styles as one moves quickly from one settlement area to another. However, this may be one of the pitfalls of the archaeology of that period. I would also have liked additional diagrams / explanations of the sculpting / firing / glazing methods as these are usually described in long wordy explanations. In some chapters I felt there weren't enough photos (the text described various pieces that were not shown) given the unprecedented access available to the scholars, although I realize that at 608 pages the book is already a brick by art book standards.

Although this book will not provide anything new for the dedicated collector / historian, it is by far the best single work in English yet available, and the quality of the photos are superb. It offers very good value for money as I have paid the same price for art books of around 200 pages or so and this runs to 600 pages of color photos and quite dense text. I wish had had this work when I was first starting to learn about ceramics!

REVIEW:  Comprehensive written and pictorial overview of Chinese ceramics. The history of Chinese ceramics stretches back for at least 14,000 years. This hefty volume describes this history and discusses some of the ceramics produced over the centuries in great detail. The individual chapters discuss ceramics manufactured during the various dynastic periods and the book ends with sections on "the export and trade of Chinese ceramics" and "ten lectures on the authentication of Chinese ceramics". The writing is clear, scholarly, comprehensive and full of interesting detail. This book would be of great appeal to those with a specialized interest in this area of decorative art. It would also be a desirable addition to the library of people with more general interest in the subject (myself included).

The generalist would be attracted to this book in part because of the numerous and often large sized illustrations of the various ceramics under discussion. The examples of works chosen are of the highest quality and are often extraordinarily beautiful. The quality of printing and photographic reproduction is very satisfactory. Books on this subject are often restricted to specific historic periods. They tend also to be much more expensive. At the price of a single book, this volume represents a virtual giveaway.

REVIEW:  Does not disappoint! Having trawled through many descriptions of books on Chinese ceramics, looked at books and websites, I wanted a solid, comprehensive introduction for someone who is fairly new to the topic, but keen to gain an intelligent overview. Solid indeed! It is a weighty and beautiful tome. The publisher's name was a good guide to the quality expected. The text is informative and gives every appearance of being authoritative. I will return again and again to read, consult, and just savor this book. The photographs and line drawings are well chosen and beautifully (re)produced. I particularly appreciated the clear indication provided with the photo (not just in an appendix) of where each item is held, as well as its dimensions (in centimeters, for those of us outside the USA/UK). I learn that Yale University has a series on Chinese Civilization and Culture, of which this book is part. I certainly intend to buy further volumes in the series: the price, delivered to my door on the other side of the world, was very reasonable indeed. 

REVIEW:  An excellent overview of Chinese ceramics. There are literally dozens of books on Chinese ceramics published over many decades of time. Many or most make a unique contribution to a collector's knowledge of this broad and complex topic. This book comes the closest to being comprehensive. Granted that for any one topic they may be material that could have been added. However that would have required a library sized series of books. I was particularly impressed with the chapter on the Ming dynasty ceramics obviously written by an expert who has great knowledge of his subject. I might add this is a heavy weight tome that challenges my muscles every time I pick it up which fairly frequently. 

REVIEW:  A gathering of Celestial Brightness!  Li Zhiyan is senior research fellow at the National Museum of China and former vice president of the Association of Chinese Ancient Ceramics. Virginia L. Bower is an adjunct associate professor at the University of the Arts, Philadelphia. He Li is associate curator of Chinese art, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. David Ake Sensabaugh is the Ruth and Bruce Dayton Curator of Asian Art at the Yale University Art Gallery. Ding Pengbo is research fellow at the National Museum of China. Li Jixian is research fellow at the Chinese Institute of Art and a member of the Chinese Society of Archaeology. Quan Kuishan is professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology, Peking University. Laurie E. Barnes is Elizabeth B. McGraw Curator of Chinese Art at the Norton Museum of Art. Kanazawa Yoh is a curator at the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo. William R. Sargent is an independent scholar and curator, and the former curator of Asian export art at the Peabody Essex Museum.  I am humbled to be in the aura of this celestial brightness.

REVIEW:  How does a child come to appreciate great art and craftsmanship? For me, it was the discovery of the delicate Chinese porcelain vases just off the Great Hall of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I think I was 8 or 9 and my mother would drag me through the halls of the museum hoping something would stick. This visit something did. Their simple forms and the beautiful glazes just stopped me in my tracks as if something just turned on inside my brain. My interests in art has broadened considerably since I was a child but I do remember my appreciation of art in all its forms started here. 

Which leads me to this beautiful, scholarly book on the history of Chinese ceramics. It is a fantastic introduction to the wonders of Chinese ceramics and I can not recommend this book more highly. Copiously illustrated with tremendous insight into the history, technology and art of Chinese ceramics I can't imagine a better introduction to this ancient art form.

REVIEW:  Bought this book to ooooh and aahhh at beautiful Chinese ceramics I have seen in various museums around the world. I wanted to learn more about the history and background of what I had seen. This is a fantastic book for that, and the price was right. You can't get a better reference on Chinese ceramics, this will be your best guide through the ages. Now to find that proverbial 'needle in the hay stack' and find that treasure at a garage sale or swap meet and I'll be set.

REVIEW:  This was the book I needed to explain to me most of everything I needed to learn about Chinese Ceramics. I have not finished reading as I only received shortly, but it has helped me understand the evolution of Chinese Ceramics. Exactly what I was looking for on this subject. I only wish there were more color photos to view the evolution of the paint colors. Thank You!

REVIEW:  This is the best book as a readable book rather than photographic illustrations which also were very good. First class Forward only 2 pages on geology and continued with excellent work over the periods. Extremely Fine work-excellent read.

REVIEW:  Beautiful and encyclopedic.  Superb photography and intelligent, well articulated essays by the contributing authors make this massive book a must-have.  For the price the production quality is stunning, and it's the sort of book that you will keep for a lifetime.  

REVIEW:  This overview of Chinese ceramics contains illustrations of works in Chinese, European, Japanese, Korean, Middle Eastern and North American collections, and is written by American, Chinese and Japanese scholars so it truly is comprehensive. It is an excellent "starting point" for those seeking more information about this subject, and will be a welcome "review" for those who are already familiar with it.

REVIEW:  Great read to understand more about the history of the china/porcelain industry and products of China. Perfect for the collector of blue and white.

REVIEW:  This hefty book - it weights at least ten pounds - looks as if it just might replace Valenstein (2nd ed.) as the standard survey of the subject. Gorgeous object.  I've read the introduction, overview of Chinese ceramic history, and the first chapter which provides a survey history of Chinese ceramics during the Neolithic era, during which potters created my very favorite pieces. The chapter does contain a sufficient number of line drawings and photos of pieces on display to help the attentive reader begin to makes his own assessments.

REVIEW:  Big heavy book with great pictures. A fantastic book well worth buying. It will please many collectors or people interested in Chinese ceramics.

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND:

HISTORY OF CHINESE EARTHENWARE: The first Chinese ceramics archaeologists have found date back more than 10,000 years. These were earthenware, which means they were made from clay and fired at the kind of low temperatures reached by a wood fire or simple oven. In China, most ceramics made before the Tang dynasty (600 A.D.) are earthenware. They may be glazed or unglazed, and are occasionally painted, often brightly colored. Stoneware ceramics are harder and less porous than earthenware and are fired at hotter temperatures—between 2100°F and 2400°F. At these high temperatures, the surface of the clay melts and becomes glassy.

Although stoneware is usually waterproof, most stoneware ceramics are glazed for decoration. The glazes often contain ash, which allows the glaze to harden at stoneware temperatures. During the Shang Dynasty (1600-1100 B.C.) bronze metallurgy superseded ceramics as the favored art form of the ruling class. However both the ceramic and the bronze industries evolved into complex systems of production that were supported by the aristocracy. Decorative designs rich in symbolism were created first in bronze were then imitated in clay. Chinese burial customs included the tradition of placing clay replicas of material possessions, animals and people in the tomb to accompany the deceased and serve them in the next life.

Although archaeological finds have revealed that glazed pottery was produced as early as 1100 B.C. during the Zhou dynasty, the production of glazed wares was not common until about 200 B.C. during the Han Dynasty. However from about 1000 B.C. onwards during the Shang and Zhou dynasties, primitive porcelain wares emerged. Real porcelain wares appeared in the Han dynasty around 200 A.D. In the process of porcelain development, different styles in different periods blossomed. The production of porcelain became widespread by about 500 A.D. Using a special clay with ground rock containing feldspar, a glassy mineral, the material was fired at very high temperatures above 2400°F.

The surface of the clay melts at such high temperatures and becomes smooth as glass. Early porcelains were undecorated and were used by the Imperial court and exported as far as the Middle East. For instance during the Han Dynasty principally celadon (green) and black porcelain were mainly produced. The famous blue and white porcelain was created with blue paint made from cobalt and then covered with a clear glaze, which can withstand the high temperatures of the kiln. The technical and creative innovations of Chinese potters are unique accomplishments in the cultural heritage of the world. Today, archaeological excavation and research in China are revealing new sites and new examples of the genius of the Chinese potter.

HISTORY OF SHANG DYNASTY CERAMICS: During the Shang (Yin) Dynasty (1766-1027 B.C.) the potter's wheel was used to form glazed earthenware for both ceremonial as well as everyday use. Shang tombs have yielded a rich variety of ceramics, the most notable being large, painted jars that were probably burial urns. Also notable have been large footed vessels of polished black clay which had been turned on a potter's wheel. They were associated with ritual ancestor worship and ceremonies requiring the offering of special containers of food and wine. The ceremonial vessels tended to be more elaborately decorated, but most artifacts of the period (including ceramics, jades, and bronze vessels), both those for everyday use as well as most ceremonial grave goods, were of simple design. Shang kings also constructed elaborate tombs. Convinced they could carry material possessions to the next life, members of the royal household were buried with much of their personal wealth. However for everyday life the burials even included ceramic vessels for food and drinks—jars, vases, bowls, and plates.

HISTORY OF ZHOU DYNASTY CERAMICS: During the Zhou (Chou) Dynasty (1027-221 B.C.), bronzes as well as ceramics became less religious or spiritual in nature, and were often given as wedding gifts for household decoration. Images of totemic animals and monsters gave way to colorful, abstract, ornamental, pieces often inlaid on the surface in gold or semiprecious stones. Bronze bells and mirrors were also popular during this period. In addition to glazed ceramics, there were new developments and styles in both wood sculpture and lacquerwork. Ceramic objects began to replace more expensive bronze vessels in tombs, and ceramics technology continued to advance.

HISTORY OF HAN DYNASTY CERAMICS: During the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD) grave interiors were richly furnished with a wide variety of miniature objects, usually fashioned as replicas of actual possessions, animals, or buildings. Called “spirit goods”, these items were used as substitutes for valuable possessions, and were usually produced in ceramic and were glazed or colorfully painted. The wealthy elite's increasing interest in elaborately furnished tombs led to the mass production of armies of ceramic figures made using molds. In the case of the royal burial of the sole Qin Emperor, a terra cotta army of 6,000 was produced in full size. Burial ceramics made during the Han dynasty were decorated with simple but colorful designs painted directly onto the unglazed fired pieces or with brown and green lead-based glazes that could be fired at low temperatures.

HISTORY OF SIX DYNASTIES (A.D. 220-589) CERAMICS: It was beginning with the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD) that grave interiors were richly furnished with a wide variety of miniature objects, usually fashioned as replicas of actual possessions, animals, or buildings. Called “spirit goods”, these items were used as substitutes for valuable possessions, and were usually produced in ceramic and were glazed or colorfully painted. The wealthy elite's increasing interest in elaborately furnished tombs led to the mass production of armies of ceramic figures made using molds. In the case of the royal burial of the sole Qin Emperor, a terra cotta army of 6,000 was produced in full size. Burial ceramics made during the Han dynasty were decorated with simple but colorful designs painted directly onto the unglazed fired pieces or with brown and green lead-based glazes that could be fired at low temperatures.

The period between the collapse of the Han Dynasty in 220 A.D. and the rise of the Sui and Tang Dynasties (starting in 589 A.D.) was characterized by the fragmentation of China and a prolonged power struggle. Together with the period of the Western and Eastern Jin Dynasties, the “Three Kingdoms” together with “Southern” and the “Northern” Dynasties cover a period of three and one-half centuries during which, despite the chaotic conditions of the period, the ceramic industry developed rapidly and ceramic production flourished. By then, porcelain-making techniques in Southern China had been enhanced and the ceramics-making area and scale increasingly expanded with kiln sites spread throughout many provinces. Excavation of white porcelain objects from noble tombs shows that white porcelain was already in production in the Northern provinces, and its emergence paved the way for further development porcelain production in the coming Sui and Tang Dynasties.

There were many other notable advances in ceramic arts, including green-glazed stoneware, highly durable and often fashioned into bowls and jars. The discovery of what became known as “celadon glazing” was a major development during the period. Fine ash or ash mixed with clay was painted onto the vessel and after firing it turned pale green. This rare funerary urn belongs to this class of vessels. Potters of the era continued improving the quality of these early “celadon” wares both with respect to glaze color and in body clay. The production of glazed porcelain was a significant achievement in Chinese ceramic history. It was eventually exported as far as the Philippines and Egypt. Ceramic figurines produced during the period were notable for increased detail. The most profound influence on the art of the period (including ceramics) was the Buddhist religion which came from neighboring India. Objects imported from the Middle East and Central and West Asia also strongly influenced the period’s ceramic arts.

In spite of the political and social confusion of the period, major changes occurred in the spiritual life of the Chinese. Daoism, which had played a previously minor role in religious thought, was revitalized, and Buddhism reached the Chinese court from India and Tibet. The Buddhist notion of Bodhisattvas - compassionate beings who have delayed their own enlightenment in order to guide others along the right path - was integrated into existing beliefs, along with ideas of Buddhist heavens and symbols of worship. The quest for eternity gained great favor and people sought methods such as drinking mercury and other potions devised by alchemists to prolong their lives. These unsettled times were also a period of transition in the development of ceramics wares. The 'proto-celadon' wares described above were precursors to the renowned celadon wares of the Song dynasty (960–1279 A.D.). The increasing prominence of religion including Daoism and the emergence of Buddhism in China greatly expanded the design repertoire. Daoist Immortals, cosmological symbols and Buddhist guardians were all represented in ceramic forms. The replicas of humans and animals became more and more life-like, while images of the 'unreal' such as guardian spirits, became more and more imaginary and fanciful.

HISTORY OF THREE KINGDOMS-SUI-TANG DYNASTIES CERAMICS: The four century period between the Han Dynasty and the Sui/Tang Dynasty was characterized by the fragmentation of China and a prolonged power struggle. Despite the chaotic conditions of the period, ceramic production flourished. There were many notable advances in ceramic arts, including green-glazed stoneware, highly durable and often fashioned into bowls and jars. Potters of the era continued improving the quality of these early “Celadon” wares both with respect to glaze color and in body clay. The production of glazed porcelain was a significant achievement in Chinese ceramic history. It was eventually exported as far as the Philippines and Egypt. Ceramic figurines produced during the period were notable for increased detail. The most profound influence on the art of the period (including ceramics) was the Buddhist religion which came from neighboring India. Objects imported from the Middle East and Central and West Asia also strongly influenced the period’s ceramic arts.

Eventually China was reunified under the Tang Dynasty (618-906 A.D.). China's Golden Age was characterized by a stable government, and the resulting economic prosperity brought about a flourishing of all the arts, including painting, ceramics, metalwork, music, and poetry. Important influences from the Middle East, brought by traders and artisans from many nations, stimulated new styles in metalwork and ceramics. Colorfully glazed earthenware, especially ewers and rhytons (drinking vessels) closely resembling Persian silverwork, drew inspiration from metal prototypes. During the Tang era, the technique of producing and firing fine-grained white clay into what is known today as porcelain was perfected. The combination of fine white clay and sophisticated kiln technology gave birth to the first translucent white ceramics which were truly porcelain.

Both the white and the green-glazed porcelain varieties became highly prized by both the wealthy Chinese and foreigners. The green “celadon” porcelains possessed a subtle bluish-green glaze and were characterized by their simple and elegant shapes. Both the celadon and white varieties were so popular that production on a huge scale continued at various kiln centers throughout China well into the succeeding dynasties, and the product was shipped as far as Egypt, Southeast Asia, Korea and Japan. It was also during the Tang dynasty that sancai ("three-colored") wares were first made for burial, using glazes that produced mottled and streaky effects in green, amber-brown, and cream, with an occasional addition of blue. The technique is most famed today as the beautiful multicolored glazes of the Tang dynasty pottery figures of both humans and animals. The glaze occurs on both mortuary pieces for funerary use as well as on utilitarian pieces for use in China as well as for export.

HISTORY OF SONG DYNASTY (960-1279 A.D.) CERAMICS: Fifty years of chaos followed the fall of the Tang Dynasty before the rise of two competing but complementary Dynasties in China; the shorter-lived Liao to the North and the Song to the South. Liao ceramics are unique in form, glaze and design but still utilize Chinese techniques, sometimes showing Tang influence. Liao ceramics are often monochrome white and black similar to that which would be widely produced in the future during the Yuan dynasty. Other Liao ceramics are similar to Tang sancai (three color) lead glazes. The most fundamentally unique characteristics of Liao ceramics were their shapes. To the South, the arts of the Song Dynasty showed introspection and refinement. The Song emperors were among China's most culturally enlightened rulers, many were accomplished artists in their own right. Song ceramics provide a parallel to the era’s renowned landscape painting in their variety and accomplishments.

The finest ceramic products included Ting ware characterized by a milky white glaze and delicately carved or impressed designs. A common motif featured lotus blossoms, which were originally a Buddhist symbol but were often used for decoration in Song secular art. Also highly regarded is vividly colored Chün ware, with splashes of red or purple painted on a blue glazed surface. It was popular in the royal court and was often used for bowls and flowerpots. Classic blue-green celadon and white porcelain continued to be produced in large quantities, most frequently found in the shape of vases. In addition to these royal favorites, a group of popular stoneware, called Tz'u-chou, was manufactured in for local use. The Tz'u-chou potters used a wide variety of decorative techniques, including glazing, painting, incising, and enameling. Chien ware was the favorite of Buddhist monks in Fujian Province who drank their tea from glossy, black-glazed bowls.

During the Song Dynasty porcelain kilns were established at Jingdezhen, where porcelain is still produced today. Jingdezhen became the dominant producer due to its proximity to deposits of high-quality porcelain clay and to two major river systems for transport. Their kilns were particularly successful due to the innovation we know as assembly line techniques. Huge demand came both from a growing Chinese middle class and from foreign merchants, and led to a diversity of shapes, glazes, and decorative motifs. The Song dynasty was the most important dynasty in Chinese porcelain history, and brought prosperity in porcelain production. Amongst the most famous porcelain ever produced were exceedingly fine and delicate Ru Kiln wares which used special a glaze with orange carnelian added. The production of Ru ware lasted only 20 years, and today are so rare that only about 70 pieces are known to still exist.

HISTORY OF YUAN DYNASTY CERAMICS: The Mongol invasion of China led to the fall of the Song Dynasty, the rise of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368 A.D.), and a more cosmopolitan view of the world, broadening horizons and significantly altering the Chinese. Important advances in porcelain techniques included underglaze porcelain; ground cobalt was mixed with water and painted on an unfired piece of porcelain. In the kiln, the blackish pigment turned a rich shade of blue, thus creating the famous tradition of blue-and-white ware. For centuries blue and white porcelain was produced not only for markets in China, but for export to the Muslim Middle East and Europe. Copper oxide was also used successfully as a decorative agent in the same way, creating the class of porcelains known as underglaze red. A growing demand for Chinese ceramics in the Middle East stimulated the Mongol rulers to boost ceramic output for export. Though the Mongol Yuan Dynasty was short-lived, it had a profound effect on the history of porcelain production for the next 600 years.

HISTORY OF MING DYNASTY CERAMICS: The Mongol Yuan Dynasty’s rule ended with the establishment of a native Chinese dynasty, known as the Ming (1368-1644 A.D.). The Ming period is famous for its decorative arts. Ceramic production increased dramatically, and foreign markets expanded greatly as underglaze blue and red porcelain became increasingly popular for export. In addition, enameling was introduced. A double-fire process was discovered by which an object was first fired at the high temperature needed for porcelain, then painted with the desired colors, such as green, yellow, or purple, and fired a second time. This invention allowed for an almost infinite variety of bright colors to decorate the finest Chinese ceramics. Many new styles appeared, such as the famille wares, which were especially popular in the European markets. In the later half of the Ming dynasty, European traders established direct contact with China and stimulated the ever-growing ceramics market to produce objects with new shapes and designs.

Perhaps the most famous type of ceramics made during this period are the (cobalt) blue and white porcelains. These were white porcelain bodies painted with underglaze blue and then covered with a transparent glaze before firing. Not only produced in vast quantities for imperial use, they were also exported as far as Turkey. While styles of decorative motif and vessel shape changed with each new Ming emperor, the quality of Ming blue and whites are indisputably superior to that of any other time period. Throughout the Ming dynasty, the dragon (representing the male) and the phoenix (representing the female or dragons bride) were the most popular decorative motifs on ceramic wares. The production of “sancai” (three-color) porcelain was also of remarkable quality, especially of human and animal figures, and such pieces remain much sought after even to present time.

HISTORY OF QING DYNASTY CERAMICS: The Qing (Ch’ing) Dynasty (1644-1911 A.D.) was the last imperial dynasty of China. Imperial patronage stimulated one of China's most intense periods of ceramic production, characterized by unmatched technical expertise and refinement in blue and white, monochrome, and polychrome ceramics. Colorful enamel porcelain overglazes were invented. The process of enameling was further developed, along with a nearly endless number of new shades for monochrome-glazed porcelain. An innovative new technique produced five-colored porcelains. Applying a variety of under-glaze pigments to decorative schemes of flower, landscape and figurative scenes, these five-colored porcelains gained great renown in Western Europe.

In almost every major European museum, you will find either five-colored or monochromatic porcelain (in blue, red, yellow or pink) from this period. The finest export wares were produced for European markets in the 17th and 18th centuries. Perhaps the most exciting pottery was produced in small, provincial workshops. The potters here did not compete with the elaborate imperial kilns, but instead created delightful wares for local patrons. Small porcelain items such as teapots, pen rests, and water droppers were commonly found on most any gentleman's desk from China to Europe [AncientGifts].

HISTORY OF CHINESE CIVILIZATION: Remains of Homo erectus , found near Beijing, have been dated back 460,000 years. Recent archaeological studies in the Yangtse River area have provided evidence of ancient cultures (and rice cultivation) flourishing more than 11,500 years ago, contrary to the conventional belief that the Yellow River area was the cradle of the Chinese civilization. The Neolithic period flourished with a multiplicity of cultures in different regions dating back to around 5000 B.C. There is strong evidence of two so-called pottery cultures, the Yang-shao culture (3950-1700 B.C.) and the Lung-shan culture (2000-1850 B.C).

Written records go back more than 3,500 years, and the written history is (as is the case with Ancient Egypt) divided into dynasties, families of kings or emperors. The voluminous records kept by the ancient Chinese provide us with knowledge into their strong sense of their real and mythological origins – as well as of their neighbors. By about 2500 B.C. the Chinese knew how to cultivate and weave silk and were trading the luxurious fabric with other nations by about 1000 B.C. The production and value of silk tell much about the advanced state of early Chinese civilization. Cultivation of silkworms required mulberry tree orchards, temperature controls and periodic feedings around the clock. More than 2,000 silkworms were required to produce one pound of silk. The Chinese also mastered spinning, dyeing and weaving silk threads into fabric.

Bodies were buried with food containers and other possessions, presumably to assist the smooth passage of the dead to the next world. The relative success of ancient China can be attributed to the superiority of their ideographic written language, their technology, and their political institutions; the refinement of their artistic and intellectual creativity; and the sheer weight of their numbers. A recurrent historical theme has been the unceasing struggle of the sedentary Chinese against the threats posed by non-Chinese peoples on the margins of their territory in the north, northeast, and northwest.

China saw itself surrounded on all sides by so-called barbarian peoples whose cultures were demonstrably inferior by Chinese standards. This China-centered ("sinocentric") view of the world was still undisturbed in the nineteenth century, at the time of the first serious confrontation with the West. Of course the ancient Chinese showed a remarkable ability to absorb the people of surrounding areas into their own civilization. The process of assimilation continued over the centuries through conquest and colonization until what is now known as China Proper was brought under unified rule.

XIA DYNASTY HISTORY: The Xia (Hsia) Dynasty was the first recorded dynasty, and is dated roughly from 2200 B.C. to 1700 B.C. Until scientific excavations were made at early bronze-age sites at Anyang in Henan Province, in 1928, it was difficult to separate myth from reality in regard to the Xia. In fact conventional wisdom at the time held that the Xia Dynasty was imaginary. But since then, and especially in the 1960s and 1970s, archaeologists have uncovered urban sites, bronze implements, and tombs that point to the existence of Xia civilization in the same locations cited in ancient Chinese historical texts. The Xia period marked an evolutionary stage between the late neolithic cultures and the typical Chinese urban civilization of the Shang dynasty. The rulers of the period held power for five centuries before (reportedly) becoming corrupt, and subsequently overthrown by the Shang Dynasty.

SHANG DYNASTY HISTORY: Thousands of archaeological finds in the Yellow River Valley provide evidence about the Shang (Yin) dynasty (1700-1027 B.C.). Founded by the rebel leader who overthrew the last Xia emperor, the civilization was based on agriculture, hunting and animal husbandry. Millet, wheat, barley, and, possibly, some rice were grown. Silkworms were cultivated, and pigs, dogs, sheep, and oxen were raised. Two significant developments during the Shang Dynasty were the development of a writing system, as revealed in archaic Chinese inscriptions found on tortoise shells and flat cattle bones (oracle bones), and the use of bronze metallurgy.

The written language developed contained over 2,000 written characters, many of which remain in use today. The bronze castings, often ceremonial vessels, were amongst the best in the world. Bronze weapons and other tools found indicate a high level of metallurgy and craftsmanship. A line of hereditary Shang emperors ruled over much of northern China, and engaged neighboring settlements and nomadic steppes herdsmen in frequent warfare. The principal cities were centers of glittering court life, punctuated with rituals to honor both the spirits as well as the sacred ancestors. The Shang rulers who were also the “high priest” of the prevalent form of ancestor worship, were buried with many valuables as well as domestic articles, presumably for use in the afterlife. Hundreds of commoners (perhaps slaves) were buried alive with the royal corpse.

ZHOU (CHOU) DYNASTY & WARRING STATES PERIOD HISTORY: Sharing the language and culture of the Shang, the Zhou (Chou) Dynasty through conquest and colonization gradually enveloped much of North China. The Zhou dynasty lasted longer than any other, from 1027 to 221 B.C. The early decentralization of the Zhou Dynasty has oftentimes been compared to Europe’s medieval feudal system. However social organization in the Zhou Dunasty was more predicated upon family and tribal ties than feudal legal bonds. Philosophers of the period enunciated the doctrine of the "mandate of heaven", the notion that the ruler (the "son of heaven") governed by divine right. In reality the emperor shared power with the local lords.

At times the local lords were oftentimes more powerful than the emperor. In the later dynasty, large scale conflicts oftentimes erupted between rival local lords (eventually culminating in the “Warring States” period). The late Zhou Dynasty’s potpourri of city-states became progressively centralized, characterized by greater central control over local governments and systematic agricultural taxation. The iron-tipped, ox-drawn plow, together with improved irrigation techniques, brought higher agricultural yields, which, in turn, supported a steady rise in population. The growth in population was accompanied by the production of much new wealth, and a new class of merchants and traders arose.

However in 771 B.C. the Zhou court was sacked, and its king was killed by invading barbarians who were allied with rebel lords. The Zhou retreated eastward relocating their capital city. Today historians divide the Zhou Dynasty into the Western Zhou (1027-771 B.C.) and Eastern Zhou (770-221 B.C.). The west was abandoned, and the power of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty gradually diminished. The Eastern Dynasty itself is further divided by historians into two periods reflecting the accelerating fragmentation and disintegration of China. The first from 770 to 476 B.C. is called the Spring and Autumn Period. The second is known as the Warring States Period (475-221 B.C.), as China completely dissolved.

Though marked by disunity and civil strife, these two periods marked an era of cultural advancements known today as the "golden age" of China. Commerce was stimulated by the introduction of coinage. The use of iron not only revolutionized the production of weaponry but also the manufacture of farm implements. An atmosphere of reform was the result of the competition between rival warlords to build strong and loyal armies, requiring increased economic production and a strong tax base. This created a demand for ever-increasing numbers of skilled, literate officials and teachers (a “civil service”), recruited on merit.

Public works such as flood control, irrigation projects, and canal digging were executed on a grand scale. Enormous walls were built around cities and along the broad stretches of the northern frontier. Many of the era’s intellectuals were employed as advisers by China’s rulers on the methods of government, war, and diplomacy. So many different philosophies developed during these two periods that the era is often referred to as “The Hundred Schools of Thought”. The period produced many of the great classical writings on which Chinese practices were to be based for the next two and one-half millennia, including those of Confucius (551-479 B.C.).

HAN/QIN DYNASTY HISTORY: The History of the Han Dynasty (206 B.C. to 220 A.D.) actually begins in 221 B.C. when the western frontier state of Qin (Ch’in), the most aggressive of the Warring States, subjugated the last of its rival states, bringing the era of the Warring States to an end. For the first time most of what eventually came to be “China” was unified. The new Qin (Chin) King proclaimed himself a deity, and ruthlessly imposed a centralized nonhereditary bureaucratic system throughout the empire, establishing standardized legal codes, bureaucratic procedures, written language, and coinage. In an effort to even standardize thought and scholarship many dissenting Confucian scholars were banished or executed; their books confiscated and burned. To fend off barbarian intrusion, the fortification walls built by the various warring states were connected to make a 5,000-kilometer-long great wall. When the powerful emperor of Ch’in died, he was entombed in a massive burial mound. Recently excavated the royal grave revealed an army of more than 6,000 terra-cotta human figures and horses intended to protect the emperor's final resting place.

In ancient China his death was followed by a short civil war and the emergence of the Han Dynasty. The new empire retained much of the Qin administrative structure but retreated from the harsh and centralized rule by establishing vassal principalities in many areas. Confucian ideals of government were reinstated, and once again Confucian scholars gained prominent status as the core of the civil service. Intellectual, literary, and artistic endeavors revived and flourished. Technological advances included the invention of paper and porcelain. The Han Empire expanded westward, making possible relatively secure caravan traffic across Central Asia to Antioch, Baghdad, and Alexandria. Often called the “silk route”, it enabled the export of Chinese silk to the Roman Empire. The Earlier Han reached the zenith of its power under Emperor Wu Ti, who reigned from 140 to 87 BC. Almost all of what today constitutes China was under imperial rule.

HISTORY OF SIX DYNASTIES (A.D. 220-589): The period between the collapse of the Han Dynasty in 220 A.D. and the rise of the Sui and Tang Dynasties (starting in 589 A.D.) was characterized by the fragmentation of China and a prolonged power struggle. Together with the period of the Western and Eastern Jin Dynasties, the “Three Kingdoms” together with “Southern” and the “Northern” Dynasties cover a period of three and one-half centuries of chaotic conditions. In spite of the political and social confusion of the period, major changes occurred in the spiritual life of the Chinese. Daoism, which had played a previously minor role in religious thought, was revitalized, and Buddhism reached the Chinese court from India and Tibet. The Buddhist notion of Bodhisattvas - compassionate beings who have delayed their own enlightenment in order to guide others along the right path - was integrated into existing beliefs, along with ideas of Buddhist heavens and symbols of worship. The quest for eternity gained great favor and people sought methods such as drinking mercury and other potions devised by alchemists to prolong their lives.

HISTORY OF THREE KINGDOMS (A.D. 304-589)/SUI DYNASTY (581-618 A.D.)/TANG DYNASTY (A.D. 618-907): The collapse of the Han dynasty was followed by nearly four centuries (220-589 A.D.) of relative anarchy. Petty kingdoms waged incessant warfare against one another. Unity was restored briefly in the early years of the Jin Dynasty (A.D. 265-420), but by 317 A.D. China was again disintegrating into a succession of petty dynasties that was to last from 304 to 589 A.D. China was reunified in A.D. 589 by a military leader from Northwest China who founded the short-lived Sui Dynasty (581-618 A.D.). The tyrannical Sui Dynasty met an early demise due to the government's imposition of crushing taxes, compulsory labor, and ruthless attempts to homogenize the various sub-cultures. Though monumental engineering feats such as the completion of the Grand Canal and the reconstruction of the Great Wall were accomplished, it was at an enormous price. There were noteworthy technological advances including the invention of gunpowder (for use in fireworks) and the wheelbarrow, as well as significant advances in medicine, astronomy, and cartography. However weakened by costly and disastrous military campaigns against Korea and faced with a disaffected population, the dynasty disintegrated through a combination of popular revolts, disloyalty, and a coup which culminated in the assassination of the Emperor of the Sui Dynasty.

One of the coup leaders installed his father as emperor, thus founding the T'ang Dynasty (618 to 907 A.D.), and eventually succeeded his father to the throne. The Tang dynasty is regarded by historians as a high point in Chinese civilization. During the Tang dynasty China became an expansive, cosmopolitan empire. The capital city became the world's largest city, a center of culture and religious toleration, and attracted traders and immigrants from all over the world, enriching Chinese art and culture with their foreign influences. Stimulated by contact with India and the Middle East, the empire saw a flowering of creativity in many fields. Originating in India around the time of Confucius, Buddhism flourished during the Tang period, becoming a distinct variation and a permanent part of Chinese traditional culture. The system of civil service examinations for recruitment of the bureaucracy, designed to draw the best talents into government, was so well refined that it survived into the 20th century. The civil service which developed created a large class of literate Confucian scholar-officials who often functioned as intermediaries between the grass-roots level and the government.

Branches of both the imperial and local governments were restructured and enhanced to provide a centralized administration, and an elaborate code of administrative and penal law was enacted. The military exploits of the earliest rules created a Tang Empire even larger than that of the Han. Block printing was invented, making the written word available to vastly greater audiences and the Tang period became a golden age of literature and art. Handicraft guilds, the use of paper money, and commercial centralization all started during the late Tang Dynasty. However by the middle of the eighth century A.D., Tang power was ebbing. A unified military had dissolved into a series of petty military chiefdoms who regularly withheld taxes and support from a crumbling central government. Domestic economic instability and military defeat by Arabs in Central Asia marked the beginning of five centuries of steady decline. Misrule, court intrigues, economic mismanagement, and popular rebellions weakened the empire, making it possible for northern invaders to shatter the unity of the dynasty in 907 A.D. The next half-century saw the fragmentation of China into five northern dynasties and ten southern kingdoms.

HISTORY OF THE SONG DYNASTY (960-1279 A.D.)/LIAO DYNASTY (A.D. 907-1125): The collapse of the Tang Dynasty in 907 A.D. formed the backdrop for the rise the Sung and Liao Dynasties. During the fifty years following the collapse China fragmented into ten different kingdoms, constantly in conflict with one another, and a rapid succession of five dynasties formed and then collapsed. The Five Dynasties period ended in 960 A.D. when a military leader seized the throne and proclaimed the establishment of the Sung (Song) Dynasty (960-1279 A.D.) and reunified most of China. However the Mongols who were responsible for the demise of the preceding Tang Dynasty formed their own kingdom in North China known as the Liao Dynasty (907-1125 A.D.). For the only time in China, the contemporaneous monarchs of both the Liao and Song Dynasties recognized one another as possessing “the mandate of heaven” to rule China as the “son of heaven” – a situation similar to that of Ancient Egypt whereby one Dynasty ruled Upper Egypt, the other Lower Egypt, both Pharaohs recognizing one another’s divine right to rule.

Notwithstanding the shorter-lived Northern Liao Dynasty, the Song Dynasty proved to be the longer lived, and controlled most of China. The founders of the Song Dynasty built an effective centralized bureaucracy staffed with civilian scholar-officials. Notable for the development of cities not only as administrative entities, but also as centers of trade, industry, and maritime commerce, the Sung Dynasty gave rise to a new group of wealthy commoners, the mercantile class. Printing and education spread, private trade grew, and a market economy began to link the coastal provinces and the interior. Landholding and government employment were no longer the only means of gaining wealth and prestige. Unfortunately fearing a repeat of the anarchy created in the Tang Dynasty by petty military rulers in the frontier areas, the Sung Monarchs severely limited the power and authority of provincial military commanders. They were subordinate to centrally appointed civilian officials who had replaced the regional military governors of the Tang. Though this gave greater power and control to the emperor and his palace bureaucracy, it also led a chronic problem with military weakness. Weakness which proved to be fatal to the Sung Dynasty as they confronted the Mongols under the leadership of Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan.

HISTORY OF THE YUAN DYNASTY: The history of the Yuan Dynasty (1275-1368 A.D.) is of Mongol rule – the first alien dynasty to rule China. By the mid-thirteenth century the Mongols under Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan, had conquered North China, Korea, the Muslim kingdoms of Central Asia - even twice penetrating Europe. With the resources of a vast empire, Kublai Khan turned his ambition against the Southern Sung Dynasty, which subsequently collapsed in 1279 A.D. Under the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, the Central Asian trade routes were entirely under Mongol control and more secure than ever before. Commercially oriented infrastructure improvements encouraged overland as well as maritime commerce.

Reciprocal trade between West and East increased correspondingly, and the increased contact with Western Asia and Europe brought about an enhanced degree of cultural exchange. The cultural diversity resulted in the development of drama, written novels, and increased use of the written language. Western musical instruments were introduced enriching performing arts. Advances were realized in the fields of travel literature, cartography and geography, and scientific education. Certain key Chinese innovations, such as printing techniques, porcelain production, playing cards, and medical literature, were introduced in Europe, while the production of thin glass and cloisonne became popular in China.

The first records of travel to China by Westerners date from this time, the most famous of course by Venetian Marco Polo. The Mongols undertook extensive public works. Roads, communications, and water distribution were reorganized and improved. Granaries were ordered built throughout the empire against the possibility of famines. As the terminus of a completely renovated Grand Canal, Beijing was rebuilt with new palace grounds that included artificial lakes, hills and mountains, and parks.

Nonetheless discontent grew within China as Confucian officials and scholars resented Mongol restrictions against Chinese holding important offices. Inflation and oppressive taxes alienated Chinese peasants. During the 1330’s and 1340’s crop failures, famine, and the repeated flooding of several major rivers in North China led to uprisings in almost every province, and several major rebel leaders emerged. Aided by rivalry amongst competing Mongol heirs to the thrown, in the 1360s a former Buddhist monk turned rebel army leader was successful in extending his power throughout the Yangtze Valley and eventually overthrew the Mongol Yuan Dynasty.

HISTORY OF THE MING DYNASTY: The Ming dynasty (1368-1644 A.D.) was founded when a Han Chinese peasant and former Buddhist monk turned rebel army leader and overthrew the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. In two purges approximately 10,000 scholars, administrators, and bureaucrats and their families were put to death in an attempt to stabilize the political situation and extinguish the Mongol influence – any possible dissent was exterminated. Imperial power was reasserted throughout China and East Asia, and the former Mongol civil government was reestablished Chinese. Literature was patronized, schools were founded, and the administration of justice was reformed. The Great Wall was extended and the Grand Canal improved. The empire was divided into 15 provinces, most of which still bear their original names. With its first (Southern) capital at Nanjing, and a subsequent (Northern) capital at Beijing, the Ming reached the zenith of power during the first quarter of the fifteenth century. The Ming had inherited the world’s most powerful maritime force, and China was at the time the world leader in science and technology.

However in an attempt to extinguish the memory of Mongol rule, the Ming rejected all foreign influences. Given the stability of the period, it was not difficult to promote a belief that the Chinese had achieved the most satisfactory civilization on earth and that nothing foreign was needed or welcome. For the population of 100 million, there were no disruptions and prolonged stability of the economy, arts, society, and politics. Finding the concept of expansion and commercial ventures alien to Chinese ideas of government, Conservative Confucian bureaucrats and administrators pressed for a revival of a strict agrarian society. The Chinese emperor forbade overseas travels and stopped all building and repair of oceangoing junks. Disobedient merchants and sailors were killed, and the greatest navy of the world willed itself into extinction. Consequences of this isolationist conservatism included protracted struggles against the Mongols, Japanese pirates ravaging the coast of China, incursions by the Japanese into Korea, and eventually the weakening of the Ming Dynasty. The quality of imperial leadership deteriorated, and court eunuchs came to exercise great control over the emperor, fostering discontent and factionalism in the government. Ripe for a takeover, China again fell to alien forces when in 1644 A.D. the Manchus took Beijing and became masters of North China, establishing the last Chinese Imperial Dynasty, The Qing.

HISTORY OF THE QING DYNASTY: For the second time in its history, China found itself ruled by outsiders when the Manchus took Beijing and overthrew the Ming Dynasty, establishing the last imperial dynasty, the Qing (1644-1911 A.D.). The Manchus retained many institutions of Ming and earlier Chinese Dynasties, continuing Confucian court practices and temple rituals. The Manchu emperors supported Chinese literary and historical projects of enormous scope. The survival of much of China's ancient literature is attributed to these projects. However the Manchu were suspicious of Han Chinese, so the Qing Dynasty rulers took steps to ensure that the Manchus were not simply absorbed into the larger, dominant Han Chinese population.

Han Chinese were prohibited from migrating into the Manchu homeland, and Manchus were forbidden to engage in trade or manual labor. Intermarriage between the two groups was forbidden. In many government positions a system of dual appointments was used--the Chinese appointee was required to do the substantive work and the Manchu to ensure Han loyalty to the Qing Dynasty. The Qing regime was determined to protect itself not only from internal rebellion but also from foreign invasion. After all of China had been subjugated, the Manchus conquered Outer Mongolia, gained control of much of Central Asia and Tibet.

The Qing became the first dynasty to eliminate successfully all danger to China from across its land borders. The power of the Chinese Empire reached the highest point in its 2000-year history, and then collapsed. The collapse was partly due to internal decay, but as well due to external pressures exerted by the Western European powers. Ironically the fatal threat to the Qing Dynasty did not come overland as in the past, but by sea in the form of traders, missionaries, and soldiers of fortune from Europe.

The mindset that China was in every respect superior to outside “barbarians” resulted in an inability to evaluate correctly or respond flexibly to the new challenges presented by technologically and militarily superior Western European countries. Ultimately this cultural rigidity resulted in the demise of the Qing and the collapse of the entire millennia-old framework of dynastic rule. China was literally dismembered by Western European countries who fought over the carcass like so many wild animals. Shortly after the Sino-Japanese War the Western-educated Sun Yat-sen had initiated a revolutionary movement which established a republican form of government, overthrowing the last imperial dynasty. Of course the Republic of China was in turn overthrown by the Communists after the conclusion of World War II [AncvientGifts].

Ceramic Arts: Ceramic art is art made from ceramic materials, including clay. It may take forms including art ware, tile, figurines, sculpture, and tableware. Ceramic art is one of the arts, particularly the visual arts. Of these, it is one of the plastic arts. While some ceramics are considered fine art, some are considered to be decorative, industrial or applied art objects. Ceramics may also be considered artefacts in archaeology. Ceramic art can be made by one person or by a group of people. In a pottery or ceramic factory, a group of people design, manufacture and decorate the art ware. Products from a pottery are sometimes referred to as "art pottery". In a one-person pottery studio, ceramists or potters produce studio pottery.

The word "ceramics" comes from the Greek keramikos, meaning "pottery", which in turn comes from keramos (κεραμος) meaning "potter's clay". Most traditional ceramic products were made from clay (or clay mixed with other materials), shaped and subjected to heat, and tableware and decorative ceramics are generally still made this way. In modern ceramic engineering usage, ceramics is the art and science of making objects from inorganic, non-metallic materials by the action of heat. It excludes glass and mosaic made from glass tesserae.

There is a long history of ceramic art in almost all developed cultures, and often ceramic objects are all the artistic evidence left from vanished cultures, like that of the Nok in Africa over 2,000 years ago. Cultures especially noted for ceramics include the Chinese, Cretan, Greek, Persian, Mayan, Japanese, and Korean cultures, as well as the modern Western cultures. Elements of ceramic art, upon which different degrees of emphasis have been placed at different times, are the shape of the object, its decoration by painting, carving and other methods, and the glazing found on most ceramics.

Different types of clay, when used with different minerals and firing conditions, are used to produce earthenware, stoneware, porcelain, and bone china (fine china). Earthenware is pottery that has not been fired to vitrification and is thus permeable to water. Many types of pottery have been made from it from the earliest times, and until the 18th century it was the most common type of pottery outside the far East. Earthenware is often made from clay, quartz and feldspar. Terracotta, a type of earthenware, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic, where the fired body is porous. Its uses include vessels (notably flower pots), water and waste water pipes, bricks, and surface embellishment in building construction. Terracotta has been a common medium for ceramic art (see below).

Stoneware is a vitreous or semi-vitreous ceramic made primarily from stoneware clay or non-refractory fire clay. Stoneware is fired at high temperatures.] Vitrified or not, it is nonporous; it may or may not be glazed. One widely recognised definition is from the Combined Nomenclature of the European Communities, a European industry standard states "Stoneware, which, though dense, impermeable and hard enough to resist scratching by a steel point, differs from porcelain because it is more opaque, and normally only partially vitrified. It may be vitreous or semi-vitreous. It is usually coloured grey or brownish because of impurities in the clay used for its manufacture, and is normally glazed."

Porcelain is a ceramic material made by heating materials, generally including kaolin, in a kiln to temperatures between 1,200 and 1,400 °C (2,200 and 2,600 °F). The toughness, strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises mainly from vitrification and the formation of the mineral mullite within the body at these high temperatures. Properties associated with porcelain include low permeability and elasticity; considerable strength, hardness, toughness, whiteness, translucency and resonance; and a high resistance to chemical attack and thermal shock. Porcelain has been described as being "completely vitrified, hard, impermeable (even before glazing), white or artificially coloured, translucent (except when of considerable thickness), and resonant." However, the term porcelain lacks a universal definition and has "been applied in a very unsystematic fashion to substances of diverse kinds which have only certain surface-qualities in common" .

Bone china (fine china) is a type of soft-paste porcelain that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material, and kaolin. It has been defined as ware with a translucent body containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from animal bone and calculated calcium phosphate. Developed by English potter Josiah Spode, bone china is known for its high levels of whiteness and translucency, and very high mechanical strength and chip resistance. Its high strength allows it to be produced in thinner cross-sections than other types of porcelain. Like stoneware it is vitrified, but is translucent due to differing mineral properties.

From its initial development and up to the later part of the twentieth century, bone china was almost exclusively an English product, with production being effectively localized in Stoke-on-Trent. Most major English firms made or still make it, including Mintons, Coalport, Spode, Royal Crown Derby, Royal Doulton, Wedgwood and Worcester. In the UK, references to "china" or "porcelain" can refer to bone china, and "English porcelain" has been used as a term for it, both in the UK and around the world. Fine china is not necessarily bone china, and is a term used to refer to ware which does not contain bone ash.

China painting, or porcelain painting is the decoration of glazed porcelain objects such as plates, bowls, vases or statues. The body of the object may be hard-paste porcelain, developed in China in the 7th or 8th century, or soft-paste porcelain (often bone china), developed in 18th-century Europe. The broader term ceramic painting includes painted decoration on lead-glazed earthenware such as creamware or tin-glazed pottery such as maiolica or faience. Typically the body is first fired in a kiln to convert it into a hard porous bisque. Underglaze decoration may then be applied, followed by glaze, which is fired so it bonds to the body. The glazed porcelain may then be decorated with overglaze painting and fired again to bond the paint with the glaze. Decorations may be applied by brush or by stenciling, transfer printing, lithography and screen printing.

Slipware is a type of pottery identified by its primary decorating process where slip is placed onto the leather-hard clay body surface before firing by dipping, painting or splashing. Slip is an aqueous suspension of a clay body, which is a mixture of clays and other minerals such as quartz, feldspar and mica. A coating of white or coloured slip, known as an engobe, can be applied to the article to improve its appearance, to give a smoother surface to a rough body, mask an inferior colour or for decorative effect. Slips or engobes can also be applied by painting techniques, in isolation or in several layers and colours. Sgraffito involves scratching through a layer of coloured slip to reveal a different colour or the base body underneath. Several layers of slip and/or sgraffito can be done while the pot is still in an unfired state. One colour of slip can be fired, before a second is applied, and prior to the scratching or incising decoration. This is particularly useful if the base body is not of the desired colour or texture.

In sharp contrast to the archaeological usage, in which the term terra sigillata refers to a whole class of pottery, in contemporary ceramic art, 'terra sigillata' describes only a watery refined slip used to facilitate the burnishing of raw clay surfaces and used to promote carbon smoke effects, in both primitive low temperature firing techniques and unglazed alternative western-style Raku firing techniques. Terra sigillata is also used as a brushable decorative colourant medium in higher temperature glazed ceramic techniques.

Studio pottery is pottery made by amateur or professional artists or artisans working alone or in small groups, making unique items or short runs. Typically, all stages of manufacture are carried out by the artists themselves. Studio pottery includes functional wares such as tableware, cookware and non-functional wares such as sculpture. Studio potters can be referred to as ceramic artists, ceramists, ceramicists or as an artist who uses clay as a medium. Much studio pottery is tableware or cookware but an increasing number of studio potters produce non-functional or sculptural items. Some studio potters now prefer to call themselves ceramic artists, ceramists or simply artists. Studio pottery is represented by potters all over the world.

A tile is a manufactured piece of hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, or even glass, generally used for covering roofs, floors, walls, showers, or other objects such as tabletops. Alternatively, tile can sometimes refer to similar units made from lightweight materials such as perlite, wood, and mineral wool, typically used for wall and ceiling applications. In another sense, a "tile" is a construction tile or similar object, such as rectangular counters used in playing games (see tile-based game). The word is derived from the French word tuile, which is, in turn, from the Latin word tegula, meaning a roof tile composed of fired clay.

Tiles are often used to form wall murals and floor coverings, and can range from simple square tiles to complex mosaics. Tiles are most often made of ceramic, typically glazed for internal uses and unglazed for roofing, but other materials are also commonly used, such as glass, cork, concrete and other composite materials, and stone. Tiling stone is typically marble, onyx, granite or slate. Thinner tiles can be used on walls than on floors, which require more durable surfaces that will resist impacts.

A figurine (a diminutive form of the word figure) is a statuette that represents a human, deity, mythical creature, or animal. Figurines may be realistic or iconic, depending on the skill and intention of the creator. The earliest were made of stone or clay. In ancient Greece, many figurines were made from terracotta (see Greek terracotta figurines). Modern versions are made of ceramic, metal, glass, wood and plastic. Figurines and miniatures are sometimes used in board games, such as chess, and tabletop role playing games. Old figurines have been used to discount some historical theories, such as the origins of chess.

Tableware is the dishes or dishware used for setting a table, serving food and dining. It includes cutlery, glassware, serving dishes and other useful items for practical as well as decorative purposes. Dishes, bowls and cups may be made of ceramic, while cutlery is typically made from metal, and glassware is often made from glass or other non-ceramic materials. The quality, nature, variety and number of objects varies according to culture, religion, number of diners, cuisine and occasion. For example, Middle Eastern, Indian or Polynesian food culture and cuisine sometimes limits tableware to serving dishes, using bread or leaves as individual plates. Special occasions are usually reflected in higher quality tableware.

In addition to being a material, "terracotta" also refers to items made out of this material. In archaeology and art history, "terracotta" is often used to describe objects such as statures, and figurines not made on a potter's wheel. A prime example is the Terracotta Army, a collection of man-sized terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 B.C. and whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife.

French sculptor Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse made many terracotta pieces, but possibly the most famous is The Abduction of Hippodameia depicting the Greek mythological scene of a centaur kidnapping Hippodameia on her wedding day. American architect Louis Sullivan is well known for his elaborate glazed terracotta ornamentation, designs that would have been impossible to execute in any other medium. Terracotta and tile were used extensively in the town buildings of Victorian Birmingham, England.

There is a long history of ceramic art in almost all developed cultures, and often ceramic objects are all the artistic evidence left from vanished cultures, like that of the Nok in Africa over 2,000 years ago. Cultures especially noted for ceramics include the Chinese, Cretan, Greek, Persian, Mayan, Japanese, and Korean cultures, as well as the modern Western cultures. Although pottery figurines are found from earlier periods in Europe, the oldest pottery vessels come from East Asia, with finds in China and Japan, then still linked by a land bridge, and some in what is now the Russian Far East, providing several from 20,000–10,000 B.C., although the vessels were simple utilitarian objects. Xianrendong Cave in Jiangxi province contained pottery fragments that date back to 20,000 years ago.

Some experts believe the first true porcelain was made in the province of Zhejiang in China during the Eastern Han period. Shards recovered from archaeological Eastern Han kiln sites estimated firing temperature ranged from 1,260 to 1,300 °C (2,300 to 2,370 °F). As far back as 1000 B.C., the so-called "porcelaneous wares" or "proto-porcelain wares" were made using at least some kaolin fired at high temperatures. The dividing line between the two and true porcelain wares is not a clear one. Archaeological finds have pushed the dates to as early as the Han Dynasty (206–220 B.C.).

Until the 16th century, small quantities of expensive Chinese porcelain were imported into Europe. From the 16th century onwards attempts were made to imitate it in Europe, including soft-paste and the Medici porcelain made in Florence. None was successful until a recipe for hard-paste porcelain was devised at the Meissen factory in Dresden in 1710. Within a few years, porcelain factories sprung up at Nymphenburg in Bavaria (1754) and Capodimonte in Naples (1743) and many other places, often financed by a local ruler.

Early pots were made by what is known as the "coiling" method, which worked the clay into a long string that wound to form a shape that later made smooth walls. The potter's wheel was probably invented in Mesopotamia by the 4th millennium B.C., but spread across nearly all Eurasia and much of Africa, though it remained unknown in the New World until the arrival of Europeans. Decoration of the clay by incising and painting is found very widely, and was initially geometric, but often included figurative designs from very early on. So important is pottery to the archaeology of prehistoric cultures that many are known by names taken from their distinctive, and often very fine, pottery, such as the Linear Pottery culture, Beaker culture, Globular Amphora culture, Corded Ware culture and Funnelbeaker culture, to take examples only from Neolithic Europe (approximately 7000–1800 B.C.).

Ceramic art has generated many styles from its own tradition, but is often closely related to contemporary sculpture and metalwork. Many times in its history styles from the usually more prestigious and expensive art of metalworking have been copied in ceramics. This can be seen in early Chinese ceramics, such as pottery and ceramic-wares of the Shang Dynasty, in Ancient Roman and Iranian pottery, and Rococo European styles, copying contemporary silverware shapes. A common use of ceramics is for "pots" - containers such as bowls, vases and amphorae, as well as other tableware, but figurines have been very widely made.

The earliest evidence of glazed brick is the discovery of glazed bricks in the Elamite Temple at Chogha Zanbil, dated to the 13th century B.C. Glazed and coloured bricks were used to make low reliefs in Ancient Mesopotamia, most famously the Ishtar Gate of Babylon (circa 575 B.C.), now partly reconstructed in Berlin, with sections elsewhere. Mesopotamian craftsmen were imported for the palaces of the Persian Empire such as Persepolis. The tradition continued, and after the Islamic conquest of Persia coloured and often painted glazed bricks or tiles became an important element in Persian architecture, and from there spread to much of the Islamic world, notably the İznik pottery of Turkey under the Ottoman Empire in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Using the lusterware technology, one of the finest examples of medieval Islamic use of ceramics as wall decoration can be seen in the Mosque of Uqba also known as the Great Mosque of kairouan (in Tunisia), the upper part of the mihrab wall is adorned with polychrome and monochrome lusterware tiles; dating from 862-863, these tiles were most probably imported from Mesopotamia. Transmitted via Islamic Spain, a new tradition of Azulejos developed in Spain and especially Portugal, which by the Baroque period produced extremely large painted scenes on tiles, usually in blue and white. Delftware tiles, typically with a painted design covering only one (rather small) tile, were ubiquitous in the Netherlands and widely exported over Northern Europe from the 16th century on.

Several 18th century royal palaces had porcelain rooms with the walls entirely covered in porcelain. Surviving examples include ones at Capodimonte, Naples, the Royal Palace of Madrid and the nearby Royal Palace of Aranjuez. Elaborate tiled stoves were a feature of rooms of the middle and upper-classes in Northern Europe from the 17th to 19th centuries. There are several other types of traditional tiles that remain in manufacture, for example the small, almost mosaic, brightly coloured zellige tiles of Morocco. With exceptions, notably the Porcelain Tower of Nanjing, tiles or glazed bricks do not feature largely in East Asian ceramics.

Although pottery figurines are found from earlier periods in Europe, the oldest pottery vessels come from East Asia, with finds in China and Japan, then still linked by a land bridge, and some in what is now the Russian Far East, providing several from between 20,000 and 10,000 B.C., although the vessels were simple utilitarian objects. Xianrendong Cave in Jiangxi province contained pottery fragments that date back to 20,000 years ago.

Recent archaeological excavations at Angkor Borei (in southern Cambodia) have recovered a large number of ceramics, some of which probably date back to the prehistoric period. Most of the pottery, however, dates to the pre-Angkorian period and consists mainly of pinkish terracotta pots which were either hand-made or thrown on a wheel, and then decorated with incised patterns.

Glazed wares first appear in the archaeological record at the end of the 9th century at the Roluos temple group in the Angkor region, where green-glazed pot shards have been found. A brown glaze became popular at the beginning of the 11th century and brown-glazed wares have been found in abundance at Khmer sites in northeast Thailand. Decorating pottery with animal forms was a popular style from the 11th to 13th century. Archaeological excavations in the Angkor region have revealed that towards the end of Angkor period production of indigenous pottery declined while there was a dramatic increase in Chinese ceramic imports.

Direct evidence of the shapes of vessels is provided by scenes depicted on bas-reliefs at Khmer temples, which also offer insight into domestic and ritualistic uses of the wares. The wide range of utilitarian shapes suggest the Khmers used ceramics in their daily life for cooking, food preservation, carrying and storing liquids, as containers for medicinal herbs, perfumes and cosmetics.

Celadon was first made in China, and then exported to various parts of Asia and Europe. Celadon became a favourite of various kings and monarchs, such as the Ottoman Sultans, because of its pristine beauty, its resemblance to Chinese jade, and the belief that the celadon would change its colour if the food or wine were poisoned. There is Chinese porcelain from the late Eastern Han period (100–200 A.D.), the Three Kingdoms period (220–280 A.D.), the Six Dynasties period (220–589 A.D.), and thereafter. China in particular has had a continuous history of large-scale production, with the Imperial factories usually producing the best work. The Tang Dynasty (618 to 906 A.D.) is especially noted for grave goods figures of humans, animals and model houses, boats and other goods, excavated (usually illegally) from graves in large numbers.

The Imperial porcelain of the Song Dynasty (960–1279), featuring very subtle decoration shallowly carved by knife in the clay, is regarded by many authorities as the peak of Chinese ceramics, though the large and more exuberantly painted ceramics of the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) have a wider reputation. Chinese emperors gave ceramics as diplomatic gifts on a lavish scale, and the presence of Chinese ceramics no doubt aided the development of related traditions of ceramics in Japan and Korea in particular.

The earliest Japanese pottery was made around the 11th millennium B.C. Jōmon ware emerged in the 6th millennium B.C. and the plainer Yayoi style in about the 4th century B.C. This early pottery was soft earthenware, fired at low temperatures. The potter's wheel and a kiln capable of reaching higher temperatures and firing stoneware appeared in the 3rd or 4th centuries A.D., probably brought from China via the Korean peninsula. In the 8th century, official kilns in Japan produced simple, green lead-glazed earthenware.

Unglazed stoneware was used as funerary jars, storage jars and kitchen pots up to the 17th century. Some of the kilns improved their methods. From the 11th to the 16th century, Japan imported much porcelain from China and some from Korea. The Japanese overlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi's attempts to conquer China in the 1590s were dubbed the "Ceramic Wars" the emigration of Korean potters appeared to be a major cause. One of these potters, Yi Sam-pyeong, discovered the raw material of porcelain in Arita and produced first true porcelain in Japan.

In the 17th century, conditions in China drove some of its potters into Japan, bringing with them the knowledge to make refined porcelain. From the mid-century, the Dutch East India Company began to import Japanese porcelain into Europe. At this time, Kakiemon wares were produced at the factories of Arita, which had much in common with the Chinese Famille Verte style. The superb quality of its enamel decoration was highly prized in the West and widely imitated by the major European porcelain manufacturers. In 1971 it was declared an important "intangible cultural treasure" by the Japanese government.

In the 20th century, interest in the art of the village potter was revived by the Mingei folk movement led by potters Shoji Hamada, Kawai Kajiro and others. They studied traditional methods in order to preserve native wares that were in danger of disappearing. Modern masters use ancient methods to bring pottery and porcelain to new heights of achievement at Shiga, Iga, Karatsu, Hagi, and Bizen. A few outstanding potters were designated living cultural treasures. In the old capital of Kyoto, the Raku family continued to produce the rough tea bowls that had so delighted connoisseurs. At Mino, potters continued to reconstruct the classic formulas of Momoyama-era Seto-type tea wares of Mino, such as Oribe ware. By the 1990s many master potters worked away from ancient kilns and made classic wares in all parts of Japan.

Korean pottery has had a continuous tradition since simple earthenware from about 8000 B.C. Styles have generally been a distinctive variant of Chinese, and later Japanese, developments. The ceramics of the Goryeo Dynasty (918–1392) and early Joseon white porcelain of the following dynasty are generally regarded as the finest achievements. From the 8th to 18th centuries, glazed ceramics was important in Islamic art, usually in the form of elaborate pottery, developing on vigorous Persian and Egyptian pre-Islamic traditions in particular. Tin-opacified glazing was developed by the Islamic potters, the first examples found as blue-painted ware in Basra, dating from about the 8th century. The Islamic world had contact with China, and increasingly adapted many Chinese decorative motifs. Persian wares gradually relaxed Islamic restrictions on figurative ornament, and painted figuratives scenes became very important.

Stoneware, originating from 9th century Iraq, was also an important material in Islamic pottery. Pottery was produced in Raqqa, Syria, in the 8th century. Other centers for innovative ceramics in the Islamic world were Fustat (near modern Cairo) from 975 to 1075, Damascus from 1100 to around 1600 and Tabriz from 1470 to 1550. The albarello form, a type of maiolica earthenware jar originally designed to hold apothecaries' ointments and dry drugs, was first made in the Islamic Middle East. It was brought to Italy by Hispano-Moresque traders; the earliest Italian examples were produced in Florence in the 15th century.

Iznik pottery, made in western Anatolia, is highly decorated ceramics whose heyday was the late 16th century under the Ottoman sultans. Iznik vessels were originally made in imitation of Chinese porcelain, which was highly prized. Under Süleyman the Magnificent (1520–66), demand for Iznik wares increased. After the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the Ottoman sultans started a programme of building, which used large quantities of Iznik tiles. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul (built 1609–16) alone contains 20,000 tiles and tiles were used extensively in the Topkapi Palace (commenced 1459). As a result of this demand, tiles dominated the output of the Iznik potteries.

The earliest known ceramic objects are the Gravettian figurines from the Upper Paleolithic period, such as those discovered at Dolní Věstonice in the modern-day Czech Republic. The Venus of Dolní Věstonice (Věstonická Venuše in Czech) is a statuette of a nude female figure dating from some time from 29,000–25,000 B.C. It was made by moulding and then firing a mixture of clay and powdered bone. Similar objects in various media found throughout Europe and Asia and dating from the Upper Paleolithic period have also been called Venus figurines. Scholars are not agreed as to their purpose or cultural significance.

Glazed Egyptian faience dates to the third millennium B.C., with painted but unglazed pottery used even earlier during the predynastic Naqada culture. Faience became sophisticated and produced on a large scale, using moulds as well modelling, and later also throwing on the wheel. Several methods of glazing were developed, but colours remained largely limited to a range in the blue-green spectrum. On the Greek island of Santorini are some of the earliest finds created by the Minoans dating to the third millennium B.C., with the original settlement at Akrotiri dating to the fourth millennium B.C.; excavation work continues at the principal archaeological site of Akrotiri. Some of the excavated homes contain huge ceramic storage jars known as pithoi.

Ancient Greek and Etruscan ceramics are renowned for their figurative painting, especially in the black-figure and red-figure styles. Moulded Greek terracotta figurines, especially those from Tanagra, were small figures, often religious but later including many of everyday genre figures, apparently used purely for decoration. Ancient Roman pottery, such as Samian ware, was rarely as fine, and largely copied shapes from metalwork, but was produced in enormous quantities, and is found all over Europe and the Middle East, and beyond. Monte Testaccio is a waste mound in Rome made almost entirely of broken amphorae used for transporting and storing liquids and other products.

Few vessels of great artistic interest have survived, but there are very many small figures, often incorporated into oil lamps or similar objects, and often with religious or erotic themes (or both together – a Roman speciality). The Romans generally did not leave grave goods, the best source of ancient pottery, but even so they do not seem to have had much in the way of luxury pottery, unlike Roman glass, which the elite used with gold or silver tableware. The more expensive pottery tended to use relief decoration, often moulded, rather than paint. Especially in the Eastern Empire, local traditions continued, hybridizing with Roman styles to varying extents.

Tin-glazed pottery, or faience, originated in Iraq in the 9th century, from where it spread to Egypt, Persia and Spain before reaching Italy in the Renaissance, Holland in the 16th century and England, France and other European countries shortly after. Important regional styles in Europe include: Hispano-Moresque, maiolica, Delftware, and English Delftware. By the High Middle Ages the Hispano-Moresque ware of Al-Andaluz was the most sophisticated pottery being produced in Europe, with elaborate decoration. It introduced tin-glazing to Europe, which was developed in the Italian Renaissance in maiolica. Tin-glazed pottery was taken up in the Netherlands from the 16th to the 18th centuries, the potters making household, decorative pieces and tiles in vast numbers, usually with blue painting on a white ground.

Dutch potters took tin-glazed pottery to the British Isles, where it was made between about 1550 and 1800. In France, tin-glaze was begun in 1690 at Quimper in Brittany, followed in Rouen, Strasbourg and Lunéville. The development of white, or near white, firing bodies in Europe from the late 18th century, such as Creamware by Josiah Wedgwood and porcelain, reduced the demand for Delftware, faience and majolica. Today, tin oxide usage in glazes finds limited use in conjunction with other, lower cost opacifying agents, although it is generally restricted to specialist low temperature applications and use by studio potters, including Picasso who produced pottery using tin glazes.

Until the 16th century, small quantities of expensive Chinese porcelain were imported into Europe. From the 16th century onwards attempts were made to imitate it in Europe, including soft-paste and the Medici porcelain made in Florence. None was successful until a recipe for hard-paste porcelain was devised at the Meissen factory in Dresden in 1710. Within a few years, porcelain factories sprung up at Nymphenburg in Bavaria (1754) and Capodimonte in Naples (1743) and many other places, often financed by a local ruler.

Soft-paste porcelain was made at Rouen in the 1680s, but the first important production was at St.Cloud, letters-patent being granted in 1702. The Duc de Bourbon established a soft-paste factory, the Chantilly porcelain, in the grounds of his Château de Chantilly in 1730; a soft-paste factory was opened at Mennecy; and the Vincennes factory was set up by workers from Chantilly in 1740, moving to larger premises at Sèvres in 1756. The superior soft-paste made at Sèvres put it in the leading position in Europe in the second half of the 18th century. The first soft-paste in England was demonstrated in 1742, apparently based on the Saint-Cloud formula. In 1749 a patent was taken out on the first bone china, subsequently perfected by Josiah Spode. The main English porcelain makers in the 18th century were at Chelsea, Bow, St James's, Bristol, Derby and Lowestoft.

Porcelain was ideally suited to the energetic Rococo curves of the day. The products of these early decades of European porcelain are generally the most highly regarded, and expensive. The Meissen modeler Johann Joachim Kaendler and Franz Anton Bustelli of Nymphenburg are perhaps the most outstanding ceramic artists of the period. Like other leading modelers, they trained as sculptors and produced models from which moulds were taken.

By the end of the 18th century owning porcelain tableware and decorative objects had become obligatory among the prosperous middle-classes of Europe, and there were factories in most countries, many of which are still producing. As well as tableware, early European porcelain revived the taste for purely decorative figures of people or animals, which had also been a feature of several ancient cultures, often as grave goods. These were still being produced in China as blanc de Chine religious figures, many of which had reached Europe. European figures were almost entirely secular, and soon brightly and brilliantly painted, often in groups with a modelled setting, and a strong narrative element.

From the 17th century, Stoke-on-Trent in North Staffordshire emerged as a major centre of pottery making. Important contributions to the development of the industry were made by the firms of Wedgwood, Spode, Royal Doulton and Minton. The local presence of abundant supplies of coal and suitable clay for earthenware production led to the early but at first limited development of the local pottery industry. The construction of the Trent and Mersey Canal allowed the easy transportation of china clay from Cornwall together with other materials and facilitated the production of creamware and bone china. Other production centres had a lead in the production of high quality wares but the preeminence of North Staffordshire was brought about by methodical and detailed research and a willingness to experiment carried out over many years, initially by one man, Josiah Wedgwood. His lead was followed by other local potters, scientists and engineers.

Wedgwood is credited with the industrialization of the manufacture of pottery. His work was of very high quality: when visiting his workshop, if he saw an offending vessel that failed to meet with his standards, he would smash it with his stick, exclaiming, "This will not do for Josiah Wedgwood!" He was keenly interested in the scientific advances of his day and it was this interest that underpinned his adoption of its approach and methods to revolutionize the quality of his pottery. His unique glazes began to distinguish his wares from anything else on the market. His matt finish jasperware in two colours was highly suitable for the Neoclassicism of the end of the century, imitating the effects of Ancient Roman carved gemstone cameos like the Gemma Augustea, or the cameo glass Portland Vase, of which Wedgwood produced copies.

He also is credited with perfecting transfer-printing, first developed in England about 1750. By the end of the century this had largely replaced hand-painting for complex designs, except at the luxury end of the market, and the vast majority of the world's decorated pottery uses versions of the technique to the present day.The perfecting of underglaze transfer printing is widely credited to Josiah Spode the first. The process had been used as a development from the processes used in book printing, and early paper quality made a very refined detail in the design incapable of reproduction, so early print patterns were rather lacking in subtltey of tonal variation. The development of machine made thinner printing papers around 1804 allowed the engravers to use a much wider variety of tonal techniques which became capable of being reproduced on the ware, much more successfully.

Far from perfecting underglaze print Wedgwood was persuaded by his painters not to adopt underglaze printing until it became evident that Mr Spode was taking away his business through competitive pricing for a much more heavily decorated high quality product. Stoke-on-Trent's supremacy in pottery manufacture nurtured and attracted a large number of ceramic artists including Clarice Cliff, Susie Cooper, Lorna Bailey, Charlotte Rhead, Frederick Hurten Rhead and Jabez Vodrey.

Studio pottery is made by artists working alone or in small groups, producing unique items or short runs, typically with all stages of manufacture carried out by one individual. It is represented by potters all over the world but has strong roots in Britain, with potters such as Bernard Leach, William Staite Murray, Dora Billington, Lucie Rie and Hans Coper. Bernard Leach (1887–1979) established a style of pottery influenced by Far-Eastern and medieval English forms. After briefly experimenting with earthenware, he turned to stoneware fired to high temperatures in large oil- or wood-burning kilns.

This style dominated British studio pottery in the mid-20th-century. The Austrian refugee Lucie Rie (1902–1995) has been regarded as essentially a modernist who experimented with new glaze effects on often brightly coloured bowls and bottles. Hans Coper (1920–1981) produced non-functional, sculptural and unglazed pieces. After the Second World War, studio pottery in Britain was encouraged by the wartime ban on decorating manufactured pottery and the modernist spirit of the Festival of Britain. The simple, functional designs chimed in with the modernist ethos.

Several potteries were formed in response to this fifties boom, and this style of studio pottery remained popular into the nineteen-seventies. Elizabeth Fritsch (1940-) took up ceramics working under Hans Coper at the Royal College of Art (1968–1971). Fritsch was one of a group of outstanding ceramicists who emerged from the Royal College of Art at that time. Fritschs' ceramic vessels broke away from traditional methods and she developed a hand built flattened coil technique in stoneware smoothed and refined into accurately profiled forms. They are then hand painted with dry matt slips, in colours unusual for ceramics.

The people in North, Central, and South America continents had a wide variety of pottery traditions before Europeans arrived. The oldest ceramics known in the Americas‍—‌made from 5,000 to 6,000 years ago‍—‌are found in the Andean region, along the Pacific coast of Ecuador at Valdivia and Puerto Hormiga, and in the San Jacinto Valley of Colombia; objects from 3,800 to 4,000 years old have been discovered in Peru. Some archaeologists believe that ceramics know-how found its way by sea to Mesoamerica, the second great cradle of civilization in the Americas.

The best-developed styles found in the central and southern Andes are the ceramics found near the ceremonial site at Chavín de Huántar (800–400 B.C.) and Cupisnique (1000–400 B.C.). During the same period, another culture developed on the southern coast of Peru, in the area called Paracas. The Paracas culture (600–100 B.C.) produced marvelous works of embossed ceramic finished with a thick oil applied after firing. This colorful tradition in ceramics and textiles was followed by the Nazca culture (1–600 A.D.), whose potters developed improved techniques for preparing clay and for decorating objects, using fine brushes to paint sophisticated motifs. In the early stage of Nazca ceramics, potters painted realistic characters and landscapes.

The Moche cultures (1–800 A.D.) that flourished on the northern coast of modern Peru produced modelled clay sculptures and effigies decorated with fine lines of red on a beige background. Their pottery stands out for its huacos portrait vases, in which human faces are shown expressing different emotions‍—‌happiness, sadness, anger, melancholy‍—‌as well for its complicated drawings of wars, human sacrifices, and celebrations.

The Maya were relative latecomers to ceramic development, as their ceramic arts flourished in the Maya Classic Period, or the 2nd to 10th century. One important site in southern Belize is known as Lubaantun, that boasts particularly detailed and prolific works. As evidence of the extent to which these ceramic art works were prized, many specimens traced to Lubaantun have been found at distant Maya sites in Honduras and Guatemala. Furthermore, the current Maya people of Lubaantun continue to hand produce copies of many of the original designs found at Lubaantun.

In the United States, the oldest pottery dates to 2500 B.C. It has been found in the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve in Jacksonville, Florida, and some slightly older along the Savannah River in Georgia. The Hopi in Northern Arizona and several other Puebloan peoples including the Taos, Acoma, and Zuñi people (all in the Southwestern United States) are renowned for painted pottery in several different styles. Nampeyo and her relatives created pottery that became highly sought after beginning in the early 20th century.

Pueblo tribes in the state of New Mexico have styles distinctive to each of the various pueblos (villages). They include Santa Clara Pueblo, Taos Pueblo, Hopi Pueblos, San Ildefonso Pueblo, Acoma Pueblo and Zuni Pueblo, amongst others. Some of the renowned artists of Pueblo pottery include: Nampeyo, Elva Nampeyo, and Dextra Quotskuyva of the Hopi; Leonidas Tapia of San Juan Pueblo; and Maria Martinez and Julian Martinez of San Ildefonso Pueblo. In the early 20th century Martinez and her husband Julian rediscovered the method of creating traditional San Ildefonso Pueblo Black-on Black pottery.

Mexican ceramics are an ancient tradition. Precolumbian potters built up their wares with pinching, coiling, or hammer-an-anvil methods and, instead of using glaze, burnished their pots.

There is a strong tradition of studio artists working in ceramics in the United States. It had a period of growth in the 1960s and continues to present times. Many fine art, craft, and contemporary art museums have pieces in their permanent collections. Beatrice Wood was an American artist and studio potter located in Ojai, California. She developed a unique form of luster-glaze technique, and was active from the 1930s to her death in 1998 at 105 years old. Robert Arneson created larger sculptural work, in an abstracted representational style. There are ceramics arts departments at many colleges, universities, and fine arts institutes in the United States.

Pottery in Sub-Saharan Africa is traditionally made by coiling and is fired at low temperature. The figurines of the ancient Nok culture, whose function remains unclear, are an example of high-quality figural work, found in many cultures, such as the Benin of Nigeria. In the Aïr Region of Niger (West Africa) pottery dating from around 10,000 B.C. was excavated. Ladi Kwali, a Nigerian potter who worked in the Gwari tradition, made large pots decorated with incised patterns. Her work is an interesting hybrid of traditional African with western studio pottery. Magdalene Odundo is a Kenyan-born British studio potter whose ceramics are hand built and burnished.

A ceramics museum is a museum wholly or largely devoted to ceramics, normally ceramic artworks, whose collections may include glass and enamel as well, but will usually concentrate on pottery, including porcelain. Most national ceramics collections are in a more general museum covering all the arts, or just the decorative arts, but there are a number of specialized ceramics museums, some concentrating on the production of just one country, region or manufacturer. Others have international collections, which may concentrate on ceramics from Europe or East Asia, or have global coverage.

In Asian and Islamic countries ceramics are usually a strong feature of general and national museums. Also most specialist archaeological museums, in all countries, have large ceramics collections, as pottery is the commonest type of archaeological artifact. Most of these are broken shards however. Outstanding major ceramics collections in general museums include The Palace Museum, Beijing, with 340,000 pieces, and the National Palace Museum in Taipei city, Taiwan (25,000 pieces); both are mostly derived from the Chinese Imperial collection, and are almost entirely of pieces from China.

In London, the Victoria and Albert Museum (over 75,000 pieces, mostly after 1400 A.D.) and British Museum (mostly before 1400 A.D.) have very strong international collections. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and Freer Gallery of Art in Washington DC (12,000, all East Asian) have perhaps the best of the many fine collections in the large city museums of the United States. The Corning Museum of Glass, in Corning, New York, has more than 45,000 glass objects. [Wikipedia].

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If upon receipt of the item you are disappointed for any reason whatever, I offer a no questions asked 30-day return policy. Send it back, I will give you a complete refund of the purchase price; 1) less our original shipping/insurance costs, 2) less any non-refundable fees imposed by eBay. Please note that though they generally do, eBay may not always refund payment processing fees on returns beyond a 30-day purchase window. So except for shipping costs and any payment processing fees not refunded by eBay, we will refund all proceeds from the sale of a return item. Obviously we have no ability to influence, modify or waive eBay policies.

ABOUT US: Prior to our retirement we used to travel to Eastern Europe and Central Asia several times a year seeking antique gemstones and jewelry from the globe’s most prolific gemstone producing and cutting centers. Most of the items we offer came from acquisitions we made in Eastern Europe, India, and from the Levant (Eastern Mediterranean/Near East) during these years from various institutions and dealers. Much of what we generate on Etsy, Amazon and Ebay goes to support worthy institutions in Europe and Asia connected with Anthropology and Archaeology. Though we have a collection of ancient coins numbering in the tens of thousands, our primary interests are ancient/antique jewelry and gemstones, a reflection of our academic backgrounds.

Though perhaps difficult to find in the USA, in Eastern Europe and Central Asia antique gemstones are commonly dismounted from old, broken settings – the gold reused – the gemstones recut and reset. Before these gorgeous antique gemstones are recut, we try to acquire the best of them in their original, antique, hand-finished state – most of them originally crafted a century or more ago. We believe that the work created by these long-gone master artisans is worth protecting and preserving rather than destroying this heritage of antique gemstones by recutting the original work out of existence. That by preserving their work, in a sense, we are preserving their lives and the legacy they left for modern times. Far better to appreciate their craft than to destroy it with modern cutting.

Not everyone agrees – fully 95% or more of the antique gemstones which come into these marketplaces are recut, and the heritage of the past lost. But if you agree with us that the past is worth protecting, and that past lives and the produce of those lives still matters today, consider buying an antique, hand cut, natural gemstone rather than one of the mass-produced machine cut (often synthetic or “lab produced”) gemstones which dominate the market today. We can set most any antique gemstone you purchase from us in your choice of styles and metals ranging from rings to pendants to earrings and bracelets; in sterling silver, 14kt solid gold, and 14kt gold fill. When you purchase from us, you can count on quick shipping and careful, secure packaging. We would be happy to provide you with a certificate/guarantee of authenticity for any item you purchase from us. There is a $3 fee for mailing under separate cover. I will always respond to every inquiry whether via email or eBay message, so please feel free to write.

  • Condition: Brand New
  • Book Title: Chinese Ceramics: From the Paleolithic Period
  • Signed: No
  • Ex Libris: No
  • Narrative Type: Nonfiction
  • Dimensions: 12 x 9¼ x 2¼ inches; 8 pounds
  • Publisher: Yale University
  • Inscribed: No
  • Intended Audience: Young Adults, Adults
  • Vintage: No
  • Personalize: No
  • Publication Year: 2010
  • Type: Pictorial Catalog
  • Format: Hardcover
  • Language: English
  • Era: Ancient
  • Author: Laurie Barnes, Pengbo Ding
  • Personalized: No
  • Features: Dust Jacket, Illustrated
  • Genre: Antiquarian & Collectible, Art & Culture, Historical, History
  • Topic: Ancient World, Ceramics, Chinese History, Art History, Cultural History, History of Technology, Social Sciences, World History, Religious History, Regional History
  • Number of Pages: 608
  • ISBN: 0300112785

PicClick Insights - Chinese Ceramics Paleolithic Qing Ming Mongol Yuan Song Han Tang Sui Sancai NEW PicClick Exclusive

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