Page 34 - The art of the Chinese potter By Hobson

THE ART OF THE CHINESE POTTER

time must have been proceeding in China ; and it is not unreason-
able to assume that true porcelain was being made in the early
part of the T'ang dynasty.

By post-dating the earliest examples of lead glazes on pottery

bodies to a period shortly before the establishment of the T'ang

dynasty we would have to accept the idea of a very rapid develop-
ment of potting technique within a short space of time. It is

difficult to believe this to have been possible, having regard to the
scientific knowledge possessed in China at that period.

But the Han potter made no very ambitious attempts at artistic
productions, although, as we hold, he knew how to glaze his
vessels. The pottery was utilitarian, and the specimens with which
we are familiar are those made for burial with the dead. It was a

custom in China to put into the tomb replicas of vessels and objects

used in everyday life for the service of the dead in a better land.

Thus we find models of farmyards, granary towers, well-heads,

and cooking stoves, as well as jars, ewers, dishes, and cups from
which the spirits of the departed might eat and drink. Plate I

shows a fine example of a typical Han wine-jar, and Plate III a
model of a well-head. The decomposition of the glaze on these

wares has given an adventitious beauty to them ; the lead silicate
glazes have become iridescent, and a beautiful silvery sheen is
generally seen on part or the whole of the object.

The next great epoch in Chinese history was the T'ang dynasty
(618-906 a.d.), and by this time ceramic art had reached a very

high standard of excellence. Further evidence of contact with the

West is seen in the models of men and animals made in pottery at
that time. The fine figures of Bactrian horses and camels show
how these animals had become common objects in China by
importation, and many of the human figures indicate types of
faces which are certainly not Chinese. Plates X, XIV, and XVII

illustrate these facts.

It is natural, too, that Buddhist influence should be seen in many

of the figures dating from the T'ang dynasty. Introduced into
China perhaps as early as the 1st century a.d., Buddhism occupied
varying degrees of importance in the life of the people ; different
ruling houses adopted attitudes of friendliness or opposition to its
tenets, but the religion never took deep root in the life of the
people. In later times it became very depraved. But still Buddhism