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Chinese Porcelain

Definition
In the West, whiteware ceramics include earthernware, stoneware and porcelain, depending on the composition of the body and the temperature at which it is fired in the kiln.  But in China, only two categories are traditionally recognised, high fired and low fired ceramics.  In the oldest Chinese dictionaries, porcelain is defined as ‘fine, compact pottery’.  In the West, the defining feature of porcelain is usually its translucence, but this is not the case in China. In China, any piece, regardless if it is thick or opaque, would be regarded as Read more

Revival and Collapse

Hongwu(1368-1398)
Yongle(1403-1424)
Kangxi(1661-1722)
Qianlong(1736-1795)
Ming Dynasty : 1368 - 1644
The rebel leader Hung-Wu, also called Chu Yuan-chang, established the Ming Dynasty after throwing out the Mongols in 1368 A.D., but his power was still fairly weak after the Mongol invasion. His rule extended only from the Great Wall to the east of Tibet - smaller borders than modern China or than in T’ang Dynasty China, on which he  modelled his government by trying to keep as power centralised, and especially in his own hands Read more