Distinguish between Yongle and Xuande porcelain: Just look at the dragon pattern (for reference only)

Both of the dragon body is lateral body, its dragon toe, dragon claw is not significantly different.

Even if the tap, there is a difference between the two.

The relationship between the two is clear.

Ming Xuande blue and white alum red color sea water dragon pattern plate-Beijing Palace Museum

So Xuande is only 10 years old, but its blue-and-white porcelain also has transitional dragon patterns.

The back-cap hairs of the dragon lines are bunched or clustered backward or backward and then extend upward.

The mouth type of the mouth-opening tongue-spewing person (mostly the big organ type such as celestial sphere bottle and flat pot) and the mouth-closing person (mostly the middle and small organ type),

It is similar to the blue-and-white porcelain in the middle and late period of Yongle, and it has no Xuande year, which is obviously the transitional type of blue-and-white porcelain from Yongle to Xuande.

Ming Xuande blue-and-white vase with dragon pattern

Remarkably, compared with the blue-and-white dragon pattern in Yongle’s mid-and late-stage celestial vase, the morphology is very similar.

The mouth type, the toe claw is exactly the same, but after the top hair into six bundles to extend back and up again, both cheeks although scale, but not much, not very clear.

Qingxuande alum red dragon pattern target Jingdezhen City Ceramics Archaeological Institute, Tibet

The blue-and-white dragon patterns of early and late Xuande did not change much, perhaps because time was too short.

The upper jaw is round-mouthed, either with open mouth or with shut mouth, followed by tufted or clustered hair, or wanting to float up and down obliquely.

The ancient ceramics circles think that the Wuxuande’s model is the early works, and the Xuande’s model is the middle and late works.

Ming Xuande Green Flower Dragon Ribbed Canister, Metropolitan Museum of New York, USA

Yongxuan blue and white dragon patterns help to break the age

First,Yongle transitional type of dragon patterns, Xuande blue and white porcelain is not there.

Therefore, encounter Yongle transitional type of blue-and-white dragon pattern porcelain, it can be excluded from the Xuande period products;

As long as the dragon is strong and powerful, it can be concluded that it is not the Yuan blue-and-white porcelain, but the Yongle blue-and-white porcelain.

Second,Yongle blue-and-white porcelain dragon pattern, in addition to the celestial bottle, flat pot large-sized upper jaw has ox-tongue-shaped, medium-sized small-sized dragon pattern also has, and Xuande did not.

Therefore, if the upper jaw is like ox tongue, it can be concluded that it was not the Xuande period but the Yongle period.

Third,Yongle and Xuande’s blue-and-white celestial vase has different dragon patterns.

The blue-and-white vase of Yongle’s time had dragon lines, and the top hair stretched back into five bundles.

There were clear scales on both cheeks, and the blue-and-white vase with dragon lines on Xuande’s face.

Hereafter the top hair into six bunches first and then upward tilt up, both cheeks although scales, but less, not very clear.

Some because of this observation is not detailed and there is a misjudgment.

For example, there is a flat pot in Yongxuan, its dragon lines are open mouth spit tongue, upper jaw are ox tongue-shaped, the back top hair are vertical.

又如，永宣时都有上颌为猪嘴状，后顶毛发都向后飘伸的龙纹。

Again, when Yongxuan have pig mouth-shaped, back top hair upward or inclined above the dragon lines.

Mingxuan De Qinghua alum red colored clouds dragon pattern bowl-Taipei Palace Museum

For Yongxuan dragon pattern of the same blue-and-white porcelain, if there is a year, it is of course easy to do, if there is no year, that should be distinguished by the following several ways.

firstThe blue-and-white porcelain in the Yongle period was thinner and thinner, while the blue-and-white porcelain in the Xuande period was thicker.

The same type of porcelain, Yongle and Xuande the difference is more obvious.

secondThe white glaze of Xuande is thicker than Yongle and has more bubbles, which makes part of the decoration of Xuande blue-and-white porcelain fuzzy and unclear.

The temperature of Xuande blue-and-white porcelain kiln is higher, and the bubbles in the glaze break and form orange peel pattern on the glaze surface.

Yongle has fewer of these two phenomena.

Mingyongle glaze with red and dragon pattern plum vase

thirdThe feet of Yongle and Xuande blue-and-white porcelain, although both flat, but Yongle more than a little circle, Xuande when more flat.

Si ShiAccording to some measurements, the blue-and-white porcelain glaze contains higher potassium oxide, while the Yongle period is higher.

So Yongxuan blue-and-white porcelain glaze surface is very bright, and more Yingrun when it is Yongle blue-and-white porcelain.

Ming Xuande blue and white dragon pattern plate