“China” in English has two meanings, China as a country and China as porcelain. Westerners have linked the country of China with porcelain since a long time ago,because the technique of manufacturing porcelain was originally invented in China. Porcelain was developed on the basis of pottery. If calculated from the appearance of the primitive porcelain in the Shang Dynasty,it has a history of about 3 000 year.
The techniques of manufacturing porcelain have developed rapidly since the Eastern Han Dynasty(25- 220). Famous lilns producing porcelaiin products with unique features and new pottery and porcelain varieties constantly came forth in subsequent dynasties. Celadon manufactured in the yue Kiln of Zhejiang Province and white porcelain produced in the Xing Kiln of Hebei province in the Tang Dynasty are very precious. White porcelain of te Ding Kiln in Hebei Province,Jun porcelain of the Jun Kiln in Henan Province, and celadon of the Longquan Kiln in Zhejiang Province in the Song Dynasty are all priceless treasures. After the Song Dynasty,celadon wares produced by the ong quan kiln in Zhejiang began to be exported abroad. The Istanbul Museum in Turkey alone has a collection of more than 1 000 piees of celdon wares made in the Longquan Kiln in the song,Yuan and early Ming dynasties.
After the Yuan Dynasty,the porcelain industry rose swiftly in Jingdezhen of Jiangxi Province,which became known as the Capital of Porcelain. The procelain ware of Jingdezhen is light and artful in wight, refined and exquisite in design. The most precious items include Blue and White Porcelain, Colored Porcelaiin, Exquisite Blue and White Porcelain and Eggshell Porcelain.
The later developed ceramics in Liling of Hunan Province, Tangshan of hebei Province,Shiwan of Guangdong Province. Zibo of Shangdong Province,are also well-known for their respective features.
Chinese porcelain wares are not only daily handy necessities,but also precious arts and crafts. From the Han and Tang dynasties,Chinese porcelain wares and their manufacturing techniques gradually spread all over the world. Today ,China continues to create new varieties of precious porelain wares.
