Museum

This vase has a flaring mouth, a thin neck, a flat stomach and a bottom with white glaze on the interior but no exterior glaze. The body is painted with enamel patterns in blue, white, and yellow against a mauve ground. The golden arabesques at the neck are displayed in a three-dimensional manner like architectural ornament. The stomach is decorated with large interlocking-branch lotuses. The Kangxi reign mark in a square is engraved on the bottom. The vase is one of the earliest pieces of porcelain with painted enamel. High…

The earliest surviving underglaze-red porcelain ware was excavated in 1979 from a tomb in Jingdezhen dating to 1338. The underglaze-red porcelain wares are very precious, for they call for complicate firing techniques and very few of them survived. Besides this one kept in the Palace Museum in Beijing, other underglaze-red vases of this type are found in Japan and the collection of Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art in Britain.

The polychrome vessel has a trumpet mouth, a contracting neck, a swelling stomach, and a flared foot ring. The bottom is incised with a Qianlong reign mark in seal script (zhuan shu). The Qianlong reign was the pinnacle of porcelain production. At that time, artists innovated distinctive techniques including using porcelain to imitate lacquer, bamboo, wood, bronze, fruit, and animals. Porcelain wares not only imitated the shape, but also managed to achieve colors and textures similar to the original objects. These innovations were promoted by Tang Ying (1682-1756), the Ceramics…

The flat bottle has a round mouth slightly flared along the edge, a long neck that widens gradually, a flat body and an oval base. The entire object is decorated with blue-and-white designs. There are curled grass and entwining lotus around the mouth and neck and blue sea waves and a white dragon on the body. The fierce white dragon swimming in a boundless sea with its head turned back, whiskers fluttering and claws extended looks as if it is about to come to life. The surging and turbulent waves…

Ewers are liquor vessels derived from water droppers (zhu zi). Those dating to the Ming dynasty frequently possess long tapered necks, curved spouts, and bent handles. The ewer exhibited here dates to the Hongwu reign, an outstanding example of Ming dynasty blue-and-white porcelain. Chrysanthemum and camellia flowers decorating the ewer were popular designs at that time.

The jar has a straight mouth, a short neck, a swollen stomach, and an unglazed foot ring. The knob on the cover is in the form of a squatting lion, below which is painted a blue-and-white circular design that includes lotus, tendrils, and meandering patterns. The mouth rim and the lower part of the stomach have interlocking flowers and tendrils. The shoulder is covered with a design of cloud-shaped heads of ruyiscepters, in which white lotus grow out of ripples. Between the ruyi scepters are interlocking peony blossoms. The stomach…

This vase with a small, flared and flat mouth, short and straight neck, wide shoulders, gradually contracting body and foot ring is decorated with three bow-string bands on the shoulders. The entwining peony flowers on the body and the two rows of lotus petals on the lower part of the body are neatly incised in deep and shallow cuts. The entwining branches and the profusion of full-blown flowers with inverted and non-inverted petals are perfectly arranged. The whole vase is evenly covered with a greenish glaze, which has a smooth…

The so-called “press-hand” cup was an innovation of the official kiln at Jingdezhen in the Yongle era. In the form of a tiny bowl, it has a slightly flaring mouth rim, straight sides tapering to a round bottom and trim foot ring. The high-quality craftsmanship contributes to the elegant and simple shape. Both the interior and exterior have blue-and-white glaze designs. The blue color is deep and pure. On the inside of the cup is a mark of a mallow blossom with four characters in archaic seal script (zhuan shu)…

The jar has a flared mouth-rim, long neck, sloping shoulders and a round body that contracts at the gradually widening base. As the jar is shaped like a phoenix’s tail, it is also called the “phoenix’s tail jar.” Around the mouth-rim and neck are two circles of wavy patterns. There is another circle of rectangular spiral and wavy patterns between the neck and shoulders. The entire jar is covered with white glaze with a picture of egrets and lotus pond painted over the glaze in red, yellow, green, blue, purple…

The vase was carved with floral designs on the body before it was glazed and fired. The fluid designs are differentiated in depth, demonstrating the craftsmen’s consummate carving skills. A prunus vase (mei ping) is characterized by tall proportions, wide shoulders, narrow foot, and the short, contracted neck that can hold just one branch of prunus blossoms. This vase is tall and proud, typifying the prunus vases produced at the Ding kilns in the Song dynasty.

  The vase’s neck is thin and long. Its stomach is round but not oversized. It shows an austere and elegant style.   Porcelain vases with bowstring patterns on the bodies are signature products of the Ge kiln. Surviving Ge wares are rare, most of which are kept in the Palace Museum in Beijing and the National Palace Museum in Taipei.

This burner imitates the shape of a bronze gui vessel (a food container without cover or handle), which is an ceremonial object that appeared in the Shang and Zhou dynasties (16th century BCE-221 BCE). This simple and elegant object has two symmetrical fish-shaped handles, a foot ring, and an S-shaped body with contracting mouth and round belly. The body is covered with lighter blue glaze with a crackle pattern called “gold threads and iron lines”, which enhances the porcelain. On the bottom are six round spur-marks. This incense burner is…

This vase has a wide mouth and a thin neck. It tapers from its sloping shoulders to a round foot. On the foot is carved a seal with the date of manufacture that translates, “Made in Yongzheng period of Qing dynasty” This pale-yellow glaze (stibium oxide), used for firing ceramics for the first time in the Yongzheng period, is also called “egg-yoke” and is a little lighter than a true yellow glaze. In a book dated 1735, the ceramic manufacturing supervisor Tang Ying called it “western yellow.” Most of the…

Ru Kiln is located in Qingliangsi, Baofeng county, Henan province. The wine container is shaped like a Han dynasty bronze zun. It has three legs and a flat bottom. The diameter of the mouth is nearly the same as that of the bottom. Raised bowstring lines decorate the top, the middle and the bottom of the container. On the bottom of the container are five spur marks. The spurs were used to support the porcelain ware during firing. The wine container has a delicate sky-blue glaze both inside and out….

Ru kiln is located in Qingliangsi, Baofeng county, Henan province. The plate is praised for its mellow glaze color and lustrous surface. It was probably used to hold a tripod zun container as a set. Five tiny spur marks are left at the exterior bottom, a characteristic exclusive to Ru wares. Some 700 years after the plate was made, a jade craftsman engraved on the exterior bottom with a seven-character poem composed by the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1736-1795) out of his admiration for this piece of artworks.

Deqing kiln is located in Deqing county, Zhejiang province. The Deqing kiln site is located in Deqing county, Zhejiang province, which is well-known for making dark-glazed porcelain. Besides the chicken-head ewer, this kiln also made celadons and common types including everyday vessels such as bowls, basins, pots and flared-mouth pots. The kiln’s duration lasted for just over a century, from 4th to 5th century CE. Black glaze and green glaze both use ferric oxide as the colorant, and the black glaze has a higher proportion of ferric oxide, about 6-8%.

Yaozhou kiln is located in Huangbu, Tongchuan, Shaanxi province The drainage areas of the Yangtze River and the Huai River in south China were collectively called “Wu region”. Tortured by the summer heat, buffalos in Wu region mistook the moon for the sun and panted out of instinctive reaction. This traditional design is widely seen on Yaozhou wares dating to the Jin dynasty.

Xicun kiln is located in Guangzhou, Guangdong province The top of this pot is in the form of a phoenix’s head. A wreath on top of the phoenix’s head provides the opening for filling the pot. The body is covered in a thin glaze. The belly is carved with floral designs while the bottom portion has a banana leaf design. Comparisons with samples taken from area kilns show that the pot was produced by the Guangdong Xicun kiln for export. At the present time, few objects have been found in…

The dish has a flared mouth that tapers to a foot ring. The interior is glazed with white and the exterior is rouge-red. In the foot ring, a reign mark of the Yongzheng Emperor is written in blue in regular script (kai shu) within a double-ring frame. Porcelain ware in rouge-red glaze dates from the late years of the Kangxi reign (1662-1722) of the Qing dynasty. The production flourished in quantity and quality in the succeeding Yongzheng reign, ranging from jars to small cups. Rouge-red porcelain ware made at that…

This zun imitates the appearance of ancient bronze ware with symmetrical handles on either side of the neck. The interior and exterior walls as well as the interior of the base is glazed with “tea dust”. The name of the glaze refers to its resemblance to finely ground tea leaf. The word “sacrifice” in the title of this vessel refers to a type of animal used as sacrifice in ancestral temple halls.

The rim of this basin is painted with a ripple pattern. On the outer surface there are two registers of triangle patterns which are simplified from a fish design. The fish is a common motif in the earlier Banpo type painted pottery. The well-known basin at the Banpo site at Xi’an features a human face with a fish for the mouth, which may relate to the importance of fish to the Banpo people. Yangshao culture was named after the village of Yangshao, in Mianchi county, Henan province where the first…

The low-temperature lead green glaze over the entire body of the pot is also known as the “melon skin green”. In China, low-temperature lead glaze was invented much later than the blue-green celadon glaze. The lead glaze has a more polished, smooth surface and the glaze layer is pure and transparent like glass. However, it is easily scratched, and its chemical stability is low.

Dangyangyu kiln is located in Xiuwu county, Henan province The decoration of this jar is very special: A layer of decoration clay was applied to the biscuit of the jar before the craftsman carved floral motifs on the clay layer and removed the rest to expose the grey biscuit. In so doing, the result jar would show white floral design on a dark ground. In Song and Jurchen Jin (1115-1234) dynasties, many kilns in Shanxi, Hebei, and Henan provinces adopted such kind of decoration style. Among them, the Dangyangyu kiln…

Jun kiln is located in Yuzhou, Henan province This is a typical porcelain ware for display in the Song court. Most surviving vessels from Song dynasty Jun kiln are flowerpots and flowerpot stands, very few are zun vessels with vertical ridges, approximately 10 in total worldwide. Besides the one displayed here in the Palace Museum collection, the rest are in the collection of Shanghai Museum and the National Palace Museum in Taibei.

This celadon pot with two rim rings has a thin wall, and an even and polished glaze layer, which represents a true celadon of higher quality than the proto-porcelain. It could be regarded as the earliest porcelain in China. This kind of celadon shows great improvements, both in firing and glazing, but is still inferior to the mature porcelain.

Gongyi kiln site is located inat Gongyi city, Henan province The incense burner was made with twisted clays of two colors. The irregular flower pattern is a natural result from the twist. This is a rare masterpiece of marbleized wares. Tripod pot was a common type from Gongyi kiln in Henan province. It is an imitation of the Tang dynasty metal ware and often made into tricolor wares.

Ding ware Height: 6.8 cm, Mouth diameter: 19.2 cm, Foot diameter: 5.7 cm This round, deep bowl has a rim bound with copper and indented like the petals of a mallow blossom. The interior wall is carved with floral patterns, while the exterior is plain with glossy white glaze. In the heat of the kiln, the glaze coagulated, forming “tear stains” over the thin, fine-grained, translucent grey-white body. Carved or incised floral patterns and “tear stains” are characteristics of Ding ware.

This blue-and-white jar has a plump body and outstanding decoration motifs. The cobalt blue color resembles sapphire, with tiny black spots, indicating imported cobalt pigment. Although motifs cover all over the jar, they are well arranged and the main design is easily identified.

Jizhou kiln is located in Ji’an, Jiangxi province. The small dimension suggests it a cricket jar. This decoration style of black paint on a white ground originated from Cizhou kiln in north China. However, the two colors on Jizhou wares are in less sharp contrast since the ground is yellowish-white and the decoration is brownish-black.

Egg-white glazed porcelain refers to those white-glazed porcelain wares produced in Jingdezhen in the Yuan dynasty. Those porcelains wares are with thick clay body and bluish-white glaze color resembling eggshell. The motifs, usually design of dragon among clouds, were stamped on the wares. Because extant egg-white glazed porcelain wares are often stamped with a Chinese word referring to “Bureau of Military Affairs”(shu fu) among the decoration, these type of porcelain wares is also called “shu fu glazed ware”.

Bowl with disk-shaped bottom is a typical product of Xing kiln in the Tang dynasty. This shape of bowl appeared from the Tang dynasty, and was named after the base that has the shape of a jade disk. This type of bowls was widely made in kilns across China as a novel food container. The center of the Xing kiln complex was located in Neiqiu and Lincheng counties in Hebei province under Xingzhou region in Tang dynasty. Xing kiln’s white porcelain has a very fine body applied with pure white…

Stem plates were a common porcelain type both in the south and the north. According to archaeological finds, the earliest celadon stem plate was unearthed from the burial datable to 567, the third year of the Tiantong reign of the Northern Qi period, and this type was widely used during the Sui dynasty. This plate’s glaze is slightly yellow, suggesting it a product from the Huainan kiln of Anhui province.

This ewer has a round body, smooth and polished glaze, and is a representative work of Yue kiln’s celadon. During the Tang dynasty, Yue celadon had fine walls, and even glaze of various types, which were often praised as “jade” or “ice”. The Yue kiln in the Tang period had a huge scale of production, and was regarded as the top amongst the Tang period kilns. The Yue kiln workshops were located in Shangyu, Yuyao, and Ningbo of Zhejiang province.

This multicolor famille rose vase depicts sixty-one craftsmen at work in the imperial kilns at Zhushan of Jingdezhen. The image documents the organizational system, division of labor, and manufacturing process at the kiln. This vessel serves as a primary document for research on imperial kilns.

The pillow is shaped like a boy lying prostrate on a couch and the boy’s back is used as the surface of the pillow. The boy folds his arms to support his head; his right hand holds a ball; his feet raise and cross with one another; he wears a sleeveless jacket and a gown, whose lower part is printed with medallion design. The sides of the couch is pressed with patterns and decorated with panels. One side is adorned with raised hornless dragon; the opposite side is plain; the…

Waist drum was a wooden musical instrument introduced from West Asia. It was later included in the Tang musical instrument system, and was developed into ceramics. In the 1970s, specialists from the Palace Museum and the Museum of Henan province found shards of black-speckle-glazed waist drum during their investigation of the kiln sites in Lushan of Henan Province. They were identical to the extant ancient waist drum, which attested the provenance of this speckle-glazed waist drum.

This vessel was unearthed in 1958 from Li Yun’s grave at Puyan of Henan province. Li Yun was a general of the North Qi dynasty, who was buried in 576 (the 7th year of Wuping reign). This vessel has pure white walls, regular shape, and the glaze decoration represents a breakthrough, achieving a single color. This is the foundation for the later tricolor art of the Tang dynasty (618-960). The honeysuckle and lotus petal pattern is an assemblage from Buddhist art. Lead yellow glaze is a kind of low-temperature glaze….

A pair of flying dragons, medallions of the Chinese characters for “longevity” (shou), and cloud patterns can be found on the lid and the stomach of the jar. Waves and cliffs, symbolizing longevity, are decorates the lower part right above the bottom. As a symbol of imperial supremacy and dignity, the motif of dragon among clouds can be frequently found on objects of imperial provenance in the Ming and the Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. Blue-and-white porcelain wares of the Jijajing reign primarily adopted the imported cobalt blue pigment “Mohammedan blue” (hui…

The incense burner has a round and bulging brass body, two handles shaped like elephant trunks and a foot ring. Around the neck are 12 yellow, white, red and purple chrysanthemum flowers on light blue enamel ground. The body is decorated with six red, white and yellow entwining sprays of lotus flowers on sapphire blue ground. Below them is a band of lotus petals. The enamel coating is shining and smooth. In some places, it is as transparent as glass. The colours of the enamel are harmoniously matched so the…

Dragon was worshiped and revered by Chinese people as a divine beast. The legend has it that four Dragon Kings governing the seas of four directions lived in the undersea Crystal Palaces. Therefore, the design of dragon among waves is a common decorative motif. The nine dragons painted in cobalt blue on the bowl’s exterior wall create an impressive view. The blue-and-white porcelain wares dating to the Chenghua reign are well known for light blue colors. The result blue color shows different tones that implementing each other well, augmenting the…

In Chinese ceramic terminology, this type of red porcelain ware is referred to as “underglaze red” (youli hong) because the red color, rich in copper oxide, was painted beneath the transparent glaze layer. In contrast with the white background, the red color is extremely bright and therefore was thought to create a very auspicious atmosphere. The melon veins starts from the very bottom to the mouth rim of the jar. Around the stomach of the jar are painted twelve sets of flowers of four seasons with lake rocks. Tall and…

To make a yellow-glazed porcelain ware, the craftsman needed to pour yellow glaze immediately onto the fired unglazed biscuit. The lustrous yellow glaze resembles chicken‘s oil. Thus, the glaze is also known as “tender yellow”. In the Ming dynasty, yellow-glazed vessels were not only used as eating utensils, but also as offering containers at sacrificial ceremonies in the Altar to Earth (Di tan).

The jar is principally decorated with sea waves, the eight Buddhist symbols, lotus petals, and Sanskrit inscriptions – Dhamma Mandala in Esoteric Buddhism. Extremely rare amongst the blue-and-white porcelain wares of the Xuande reign, this jar is densely embedded with religious significance. It is considered commissioned by the Ming imperial court and fired at Jingdezhen kilns as an implement for Buddhist rituals.

The design of a Qilin (or kyrin) and a flying phoenix painted in the center of the plate symbolizes auspiciousness and harmony.   In the Yuan dynasty, there were two ways to make blue-and-white porcelain wares: one was to paint the design with cobalt blue pigment on the white clay body; the other was to leave the design intact but instead paint the rest part of the white clay body with cobalt blue pigment, so that the result porcelain ware showed white design on a blue ground, such as the plate…