Underground Fragmented Porcelain Pieces from Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Factory: Assembling the Past of Ancient Porcelain
2023-07-28
During the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty (1465-1487), several plain tricolor duck shaped aromatherapy pieces were fired and shaped at the Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Factory, but they were shattered and buried underground due to the lack of access to the palace's surface. More than 500 years later, this "fragrant duck" will not only be seen again, but also will become the "image spokesperson" of the Royal Kiln Museum in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province. Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Factory, also known as the Imperial Ware Factory, was established in the early Ming Dynasty and is a royal porcelain factory specializing in firing porcelain for the court. Due to the strict porcelain selection and management system of the Imperial Kiln Factory, defective or missing items fired need to be broken and buried underground to avoid entering the public, resulting in tens of millions of broken porcelain pieces buried underground in the Imperial Kiln Factory. On June 19th, blue and white fragments were displayed in the Imperial Kiln Museum in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi. Hundreds of years later, it was these fragments that left clues for future generations to decipher the past of the imperial kiln, as captured by Liu Lixin, a journalist from China News Agency. For many years, the Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Museum has collaborated with multiple archaeological units to excavate the imperial kiln site, and tens of millions of imperial kiln porcelain pieces have been revitalized. Among the tons of fragments, there are thousands of fragments belonging to the Mingcheng Huasu Tricolor Duck Aroma. "The design and technology of this duck shaped incense are very exquisite, and it has never been handed down, whether in Palace Museum in Beijing or Palace Museum in Taipei, or even in private collections." Weng Yanjun, president of Jingdezhen Royal Kiln Museum, said that thousands of pieces of duck shaped incense fragments were unearthed around the Royal Kiln site, and a total of six pieces have been repaired, one of which has also been sent to Palace Museum for repair, Realized the "Dream of Entering the Palace" of "Aromatherapy Duck". On June 19th, the restored Mingcheng Huasu tricolor duck shaped aromatherapy was used at the Yuyao Museum in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi. Why couldn't this artifact be presented to the imperial court back then, photographed by Liu Lixin, a journalist from China News Agency? Jiang Xiaomin, the head of the restoration department at the Yuyao Museum, told reporters that this duck shaped aromatherapy is divided into two sections: the upper part is covered, the lower part is filled with spices, and the neck and abdomen are hollow. "We found that spices would go out slowly when they were burned due to lack of air, which might have been an experimental object at that time, and could not be successfully fired." The Ming and Qing dynasties were the heyday of Blue and white pottery. In addition to the fragments of "fragrant duck", a large part of the tons of fragments under the imperial kiln factory were blue and white fragments. Porcelain tiles are silent, but they record a history of cultural exchange between East and West. "During the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, the trade between West Asia and East Asia had been opened up. A pigment named 'Su Ma Li Qing' entered China along the Silk Road, and later became the present blue and white porcelain." Weng Yanjun said that after the "collision" between Jingdezhen's blue and white porcelain and Su Ma Li Qing, a stunning Blue and white pottery was produced. Weng Yanjun said that the continued popularity of Blue and white pottery benefited from the official tribute trade in the early Ming Dynasty. During the Yongle period, Ming treasure voyages sold Chinese goods, including porcelain, to more than 30 countries and regions in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, West Asia, and North Africa, opening up a Maritime Silk Road. It is understood that in addition to providing porcelain to the court, the imperial kiln also customized many diplomatic gifts. During the Ming Yongle and Xuande periods, the Jingdezhen imperial kiln fired a large number of artifacts with a strong Middle Eastern Islamic style. Blue and white Islamic wheel pattern ribbon ear gourd flat bottle repair displayed in the Imperial Kiln Museum
Edit：XiaoWanNing Responsible editor：YingLing
Source：China News Network
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