Blue and White Porcelain of Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) is a key period for the development of the
firing techniques of the Blue and White Porcelain in China. Its unique
characteristics were based on the techniques of the former dynasties. The Blue
and White Porcelain had become major porcelain product of China by the Ming
(1368-1644) and Qing Dynasties (1368-1911).
The Blue and White Porcelain of the Yuan Dynasty is large in size, with thick
roughcast. Generally there are big bottle, big pot, big bowl and big plate, with
the traditional flavor of the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1279) dynasties. Due
to the underdeveloped techniques, there are two interfaces on the body and
several veins inside the body. The roughcast is not as smooth as that of the
Ming and Qing Dynasties, while the glaze of the Blue and White Porcelain of the
Yuan Dynasty is thicker than that of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, due to more
iron in the raw material of the glaze.
There are lines like bamboo on the foot of the porcelain. The body is
connected with the foot when glaze has not been coated. The body is decorated
with lines of lotus, clouds and lots of flowers. Dense decoration was not only
applied to the blue and white porcelain but also to the picture weaving and
stone carving, reflecting the unique characteristics of that time.
The major producer of the Blue and White Porcelain in the Yuan Dynasty was Jingdezhen.
Besides, there were kilns for the blue and white porcelain production in Zhejiang
Province, east of China and Yunnan
Province, southwest of China.
|