Page 69 - Jindezhen Porcelain Production of the 19th C. by Ellen Huang, Univ. San Diego 2008

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Yongzheng, and Qianlong were named by Guo as the apex of porcelain. Again, as
general ceramic history works have pointed out, the reigns of these three emperors were

the highpoints of porcelain technology in China, during which the ceramics made at

Jingdezhen achieved a material composition of utmost quality and unsurpassed variation

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of glaze colors. Guo wrote that they were “exquisite in all respects” and that the
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porcelains of those three eras “surpassed all that came before” (chaoyue qian gu).

What is particularly important to an understanding of Guo’s conceptualization is that Guo

attributed the quality of the porcelain produced in this era to the efforts of the

“Superintendents of the porcelain factories who achieved fame” (dutao you ming zhe).

Of the famous superintendents such as Zang Yingxuan, Lang Tingji, and Nian Xiyao, he

listed Tang Ying of the Qianlong period as the one whose work brought about the zenith

of the Jingdezhen kilns’ production. This is not surprising, since Tang Ying was the

official kiln commissioner who had left the most voluminous written records of all

imperial supervisors who served in office. How Tang Ying’s writings and reputation

developed is outside the scope of this dissertation though Tang Ying’s impact will be

discussed in the next chapters. What is notable is how Guo Baochang treated Tang Ying

with heartfelt respect and identification in his writings; Guo even finished a yearly

chronicle of Tang Ying’s life and career in office following Tang’s first involvement with

the Jingdezhen kilns. 109 About Tang Ying’s entire career working for the Imperial

Household and court, Guo summarized wistfully:

…his entire life was intimately linked with ceramic
affairs… Tang Ying once wrote in his collections of
writings, notes, and poems [a set of 19 vols. entitled Taoren
xinyu] that his fundamental life mission to work in
ceramics was a result of the imperial grace. Li Fu recorded,