Judging from the pottery unearthed from Xianrendong site in northeast Jiangxi, the pottery in China has a history of nearly 20,000 years, that is, the late Paleolithic period.
At that time, primitive people used wood to make a fire, which had reached the level of perfection. Yes, our ancestors could barbecue.
In addition, their understanding of clay has a long history. Ancestors have long discovered that clay is sticky and plastic when soaked in water, and will harden when it is dry.
It can be said that the use of fire and the discovery of clay are two prerequisites for the invention of pottery.
The pottery unearthed in Xianren Cave 1000 years ago is nearly 20,000 years ago.
Now, allow me to imagine addiction, and there is another scene:
One day 20,000 years ago, in an area in northeast Jiangxi, a powerful primitive tribe accidentally killed a fat buffalo.
To thank God for his gift, they lit a bonfire and organized a grand barbecue that night.
Since ancient times, playing with mud may be a child's nature. In the evening, adults are busy eating, while children are competing with all kinds of mud dried during the day. One of them accidentally threw a bowl of rough mud into the fire.
The next day, when the primitive man cleaned up the scene, he accidentally found a pottery bowl that had been burned all night. They were surprised to find that baked clay was more durable than dry clay and food wouldn't stick to it.
From then on, they began to knead the soil into various rough utensils, and then used fire to hold daily necessities, so pottery was born.
The invention of pottery was the first time that human beings used natural materials to create a completely new thing according to their own wishes. This is a major process of human civilization.
Neolithic pottery about 10 thousand years ago
Later, the ancients used pottery and found more and more shortcomings. For example, pottery is not only single in color, but also very durable and easy to collapse. Maybe when our ancestors were cooking, Pia missed a crack in the bottom of the pot, and the whole soup was ruined in a rage!
After a long evolution, in the process of firing white pottery and hard pottery with printed patterns, the ancients gradually explored porcelain with more beautiful appearance and more convenient use.
Pottery of Xia and Shang Dynasties Unearthed in Northern Fujian in 2005
There is a transitional period from pottery to porcelain, that is, white porcelain from Shang Dynasty to Spring and Autumn Period.
Although white porcelain is classified as porcelain, it is still rough in the process of priming and firing of glaze layer, and the firing temperature is relatively low, so it is usually called "original porcelain". We can also call it porcelain 1.0 version.
Primitive porcelain from the Western Zhou Dynasty to the Spring and Autumn Period
The real porcelain in China originated from the Eastern Han Dynasty.
Porcelain in the Eastern Han Dynasty is fine, hard and non-absorbent, and coated with blue glass glaze. Such a high level of porcelain-making technology marks that China ceramic production has entered a brand-new era.
Quaternary blue glaze corrugated jar in Eastern Han Dynasty
The production technology and artistic creation of Tang porcelain reached the first peak in the history of China ceramics.
The celadon of Yue kiln is as ice as jade, the white porcelain of Xing kiln is as silver as snow, and the Tang Dynasty is colorful, which has made the "south green and north white" prosperity.
Above: Yue Kiln Celadon, Xing Kiln White Porcelain and Tang Sancai.
By the Song Dynasty, the tire weight, glaze color and manufacturing technology had been improved. The firing technology of porcelain has reached a completely mature level. Famous porcelain kilns are spread all over half of China. China's porcelain industry reached its peak in the Song Dynasty.
The black porcelain we have been talking about represents bamboo slips, one of the eight famous porcelains in the Song Dynasty.
Eight Famous Porcelains in Song Dynasty
Later, the wheel of history entered the Yuan Dynasty. Jingdezhen blue-and-white porcelain has transparent glaze color like water, light body and blue pattern on white porcelain. It is simple, elegant, fresh and full of vitality. Once launched, it swept the country and became explosive news.
In 2005, Christie's auction house in London auctioned the world's only blue-and-white porcelain jar "Guiguzi" for 230 million yuan. Interested partners can learn about its background.
Finally, let's look at the ceramics of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, China ceramics opened the world of colored porcelain. From monochrome glaze to multicolor glaze, and then from underglaze color to underglaze color, it gradually developed into underglaze color and underglaze color painting multicolor and bucket color.
One of the most famous is the Doucai Chicken Cup made in Chenghua period of Ming Dynasty, which was auctioned at Sotheby's in China in 20 14, and the transaction price was HK$ 281240,000.
At present, there are less than 20 chicken cups in Chenghua, of which 4 are in the hands of private collectors and the rest are collected by museums.
China is the hometown of porcelain, and the word China has become synonymous with China in English.
It can be said that the invention of ceramics is one of the greatest creations of the Chinese nation. This is the art of "earth" and "fire". It is related to life, aesthetics and human civilization.
Today's "Belt and Road", among which "Maritime Silk Road" was also called "Ceramic Road" earlier.
Because the nature of ceramics is different from that of silk, it is not suitable for land transportation, so sea transportation is chosen. Although there are many commodities on the commercial route, such as tea, spices, gold and silver, etc. Ceramic trade is still the main trade, so it is also called "ceramic route".