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enamel colors, applied on the glazed, fired porcelain painting, they are generally accompanied by a Finest Cultural Relics of
which is then refired, was perfected in the poetic colophon written in black in a calligraphic China: Ceramics Volume")
Chenghua period (1465-1487). Enamel colors such hand, followed by (painted) "seals" (fig. 5). The (Taipei: Shangwu ymshuguan,
as red, green, yellow, aubergine, and turquoise were subtly nuanced color and the microscopic precision 1993). PP- 76-163.
used first in the doucai ("matched" or "clashing" with which minute details are rendered make this
colors) technique, in which those overglaze colors the most sophisticated porcelain painting ever 5. For an early example of a
were combined with underglaze blue outlines and blackish brown glaze, see the
sometimes washes. Later, enamels were used in achieved. figure of a horse from a
Northern Wei tomb dated to
varying wucai ("five-color") combinations, for SOURCES FOR FIGURES 4S4, in Zhongguo meishu quanji;
Gongyi meishu bian 1; Taoci
which underglaze blue outlines were considered Fig. 1. Copyright Azimuth ("Complete Series on Chinese
unnecessary. The doucai "chicken cups" of the Art; Crafts Section i:
Chenghua period, with their charmingly painted Editions. Ceramics"), vol. 1 (Shanghai:
scenes of chickens and chicks (fig. 4), were and Shanghai renmin meishu
still are deemed the most desirable of all Ming Fig. 2. After Zhongguo meishu chubanshe, 1988), pi. 238; for a
porcelains. Both doucai and wucai continued to Quanji, Vol. I, Arts and Crafts pale yellow and an amber
be popular throughout the Qing dynasty glaze, see a covered bottle and
Edition (Shanghai: People's Arts a pilgrim flask from two
(cats. 145, 146). Publishing Company, igSS). Northern Qi tombs, the latter
dated to 575, ibid., pis. 236, 237.
Porcelain painting that approached the quality of Fig. 3. Copyright Sotheby's.
traditional ink painting was an achievement of the One of the most impressive
Fig. 4. Copyright Sotheby's.
Qing dynasty. It can be credited to a man named blue-glazed pieces is a large jar
TangYing, who supervised the imperial porcelain Fig. 5. Copyright Sotheby's.
and cover from the Anthony de
production in theYongzheng (1723— 1735) and early NOTES Rothschild collection at Ascott
House, Buckinghamshire; see
Qianlong (1736— 1795) periods, when it reached its 1. For the purpose of this Margaret Medley, T'ang Pottery
greatest heights. It required not only more highly exhibition, the term and Porcelain (London: Faber,
trained artists but also a much larger palette of "porcelain" has been used very 1981), cpl. B; and for a rare
example ot a Tang turquoise
suitable pigments to achieve a flexible range of —conservatively that is, only for glaze, see the figure of an earth
colors and shades. spirit in The Tsui Museum of
wares from the Yuan dynasty or
Imperial workshops had been set up within the later, even though some earlier Art: Chinese Ceramics I, Neolithic
palace precincts in the Forbidden City under the pieces may also seem to qualify
Kangxi emperor (1662-1722), for painting enamels to Liao (Hong Kong: The Tsui
on copper, porcelain, and glass. For this purpose the for that designation. Museum of Art, 1993), pi. 121.
most accomplished porcelain painters were sent
from Jingdezhen to Beijing together with ready- 2. Fragments of pottery molds 6. In addition to functional
made plain white porcelains suitable for enameling. have been discovered at many
In addition, some of the Jesuits residing at the Shang and Zhou dynasty sites, containers, Yue wares of the Six
court, valued for their knowledge ofWestern particularly at the Eastern Dynasties include unmistakable
science and technology, were assigned to these Zhou bronze foundry at funerary wares such as plates
workshops from time to time, to their great Houma, Shanxi Province; see with permanently affixed cups
Institute of Archaeology of and spoons, and burial figures.
chagrin. Among these artists it was Giuseppe Shanxi Province, ed.. Art of the
Castiglione (1698-1766), known to the Chinese as Houma Foundry (Princeton: 7. For Yue wares with Buddha
Lang Shining, who greatly influenced the Princeton University Press, figures predating the Western
1996); and Robert Bagley Jin bowl in the exhibition
decorative arts through his naturalistic painting
style, with its sharply defined contrasts between "Debris from the Houma (cat. 120), see Fojiao chuchuan
light and shade and emphasis on three- iianfang zhi hi ("The Southern
dimensionality and perspective. Foundry," Orientations (October
1996), pp. 50-58. Route of the Dissemination of
At about the same time, the palette of enamel the Buddhist Faith") {Beijing:
3. Compare a very similar
colors was enlarged by the introduction of two new Shang dynasty bronze jar {you), Wenwu chubanshe, 1993),
pigments developed in Europe, whose use on complete with cover and swing
handle, excavated from a hoard passim.
porcelain was rapidly perfected in China: a rose in Zhengzhou, Henan
pink and, more important, an opaque white enamel Province, published in Quanguo A8. series of the most lavishly
which, mixed with other colors, could create whole chutu wenwu zhenpin xuan
embellished funerary vases of
new ranges of opaque pastel shades. {A Selection of the Treasure of the Northern Qi dynasty is
Archaeological Finds of the
The flower-and-bird or landscape scenes from the Peoples' Republic of China) illustrated mYutaka Mino and
Kathenne R.Tsiang, Ice and
palace workshops are academic but exquisite little (Beijing: Wenwu chubanshe,
paintings. To emphasize their close connection with Green Clouds: Traditions of
•987). pi- 166. Chinese Celadon (Indianapolis:
Indiana University Press, 1986),
4. For a good selection of fine no. 38.
tomb hgures excavated in
China, see Zhongguo wenwu 9. The white wares of the Xing
jinghua daquan: Taoci juan and the Ding kilns, both in
{"Complete Series on the Hebei Province, are extremely
difficult to distinguish.
Generally speaking, the Xing
kiln centers were more
advanced during the Tang and
Five Dynasties periods, but by
the Northern Song period
were outshone by the Ding
CERAMICS IN CHINA: MAKING TREASURES FROM EARTH
