The lyrics of the blue-and-white porcelain at the time were beautiful and many people cried, and now it has become a memory of generations.I first knew “blue and white porcelain” because of this song.Then I have a little understanding of blue and white porcelain, but I always thoughtBlue and white porcelain was fired from the Yuan Dynasty and reached its peak.Ask the friends around, they mostly think so too.In fact, we have misunderstood the development of blue-and-white porcelain.According to modern archaeology, the originalAs early as the Tang Dynasty has had blue-and-white porcelain, the Song Dynasty also has blue-and-white porcelain fired.

Blue and white porcelain of Tang Dynasty

Blue and white porcelain pieces of Tang Dynasty

There are blue-and-white porcelain pieces of the Tang Dynasty in the Nanjing Museum, unearthed at the Tangcheng site of Yangzhou Normal University in Jiangsu Province.In addition in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, Henan Luoyang and other places have the Tang Dynasty blue-and-white porcelain unearthed, but many are blue-and-white porcelain.Zhengzhou Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology has a complete Tang Qing-hua tower-shaped pot, tower-shaped pot is a typical Buddhist supplies, and the blue and white flower pattern is very Islamic style.This tower-shaped pot was unearthed from the Tang Tomb in the Upper Block of Zhengzhou City.

Tang Qing Hua tower tank map

Such blue-and-white porcelain obviously can not be called the United States, rough decoration, porcelain quality is not good.Can’t the Tang Dynasty burn porcelain well?

The answer, of course, is no, only blue-and-white porcelain is not valued.The porcelain-making level of the Tang Dynasty had reached a very high level, but the most popular wasSouth Green and North White.”Nanqing” is the celadon of the Southern Yue Kiln.The celadon porcelain tyre made in Yue kiln in Tang Dynasty is exquisite and crystal-clear.Lu Yu, a writer of Tang Dynasty, once commented in the Book of Tea: “The more porcelain, the more porcelain, the more porcelain, the more ice.”

Yue kiln celadon, Ningbo Museum

“Beibai” refers to the white porcelain of the Xingyao kiln in the north.Xingyao plays an important role in the development history of ceramics in China.For Xingyao porcelain, Lu Yu also gave an ultra-high evaluation: “Xingyao silver”, “Xingyao snow”.

Xingyao white glaze pot, Palace Museum collection

The porcelain-making in Tang Dynasty formed the situation of the impenetrable “south-green and north-white”, and the blue-and-white porcelain did not get even a little attention at all.

Blue and white porcelain of Song Dynasty

blue-and-white porcelain in Song Dynasty

blue-and-white porcelain pot of Song Dynasty

If the porcelain industry in the Tang Dynasty has a “North-South Green”, then to the Song Dynasty on the famous kiln.It is not too much to describe it as” letting out hundreds of kilns at once “, and then, in such a prosperous porcelain industry, there is no place for celadon porcelain.Actually, it’s very understandable.Look at the famous five famous kilns in the Song Dynasty.You, officials, brothers, Jun, Ding kiln, these large porcelain kiln production mostly glaze-colored jade, color clear, clear and pleasing to the eye, a kind of simple and light beauty, very in line with the Song people pursue quiet elegance.The beauty of blue-and-white porcelain is certainly dazzling, obviously not in line with the Song’s aesthetic, so it is difficult to have a market.

Song Dynasty, Ruyao sky blue glaze round washing, Beijing Palace Museum, Tibet

Song Dynasty official kiln porcelain, Beijing Palace Museum, Tibet

Blue and white porcelain of Yuan Dynasty

Teacher Ma Weidou once said:”When the Yuan Dynasty was born, the giant was born.”That’s right now.只是在元代，青花瓷并非是当时瓷器的主流，甚至难有一席之地。That’s something many people don’t know.Many people mistakenly believe that blue-and-white porcelain was popular at the time.The fate of the blue-and-white porcelain in the Yuan Dynasty is similar to that of some famous painters. Although the art was achieved, it was not accepted until “after death” for many years.And the Yuan Dynasty blue-and-white porcelain in history has been forgotten for a long time.

The large blue-and-white vase collected by the Daweide Foundation was the starting point for the study of blue-and-white porcelain in the Yuan Dynasty.On the large blue-and-white vase, there is a paragraph: “…”until April of the eleventh, good day, good day, good day, good day, good day, good day, good day, good day, good day, good day”In the eleventh year (AD 1351), it was the year of the last emperor of the Yuan Dynasty.

In the 1920s, when the vase was born, it was considered a fake.Because at that time “blue-and-white porcelain was born in the Ming Dynasty” is general knowledge.既然如此，标记为元代的青花瓷自然就被世人认作是赝品。然而，这对大瓶的拥有者却另有解读，甚至在1929年发表了一篇名为《明代以前的青花瓷器：一对元代纪年的瓷瓶》的论文。渐渐的，有更多的学者也终于意识到元代也是有青花瓷的。

In 2005, a large blue-and-white jar called “Ghost Valley Down the Hill” was sold at Christie’s in London for 230 million yuan.

Ghost Valley down the hill in the Yuan Dynasty blue and white big pot

就目前发现的历代青花瓷来看，唐宋青花瓷制作粗糙，但是元代的青花瓷，尤其是元后期，已经能烧制出精美的青花瓷。

元青花瓷，北京故宫博物院藏

Burn out delicate blue-and-white porcelain needs to meet at least three conditions, that is, the whiteness of the porcelain tyre, transparent glaze, good blue-and-white material.元代的景德镇刚好能实现。宋代后，景德镇的优质瓷石资源基本耗尽，然而“山重水复疑无路，柳暗花明又一村。”它在元代时发现了高岭土，并配制出了高岭土+瓷石混合后的“二元配方”，大大提升了瓷胎的硬度及白度。而优质的青花料产自波斯，这一点蒙古人的铁骑也为景德镇实现了。透明釉自是不在话下，因此，在技术上景德镇已能烧制出精良的青花瓷。然而，青花瓷并未受到官方的重视。元代统治者似乎更喜欢金银器，毕竟元代的统治阶层本是属于游牧民族，在马背上征服天下的时候，金银器似乎更方便耐用，瓷器太脆弱了。

The ruling class of the Yuan Dynasty used porcelain, of course, but the official use of porcelain in the Yuan Dynasty was mostly white porcelain.What is widely known is a white porcelain named “pivot palace porcelain”, which is called “pivot palace porcelain” because there is the word “pivot palace” at the bottom of the porcelain, which is the Privy Council of military institutions.元代的很多优质青花瓷更多是用于出口。Iran and Turkey are said to be the largest collections of blue-and-white porcelain in the world.Turkey’s topkapa palace has about 40 blue-and-white porcelain.

Turkish Topkapa Palace Blue-and-white Porcelain of Yuan Dynasty

Unfortunately, the well-known blue-and-white porcelain of the Yuan Dynasty was not taken seriously in China and failed to win the favor of the rulers.The “giant” will have to wait after all.

blue and white porcelain of Ming Dynasty

Although the blue-and-white porcelain of Yuan Dynasty was not widely loved by rulers and society, it laid a solid foundation for the development of blue-and-white porcelain.Blue and white porcelain in the early Ming Dynasty is also unwelcome.In the Ming Yongle and Xuande period, however, it was brilliant.Why in the Tang, Song, Yuan do not pay attention to the blue-and-white porcelain in the Song Dynasty can quickly win the market?

相信很多人已经猜到了。瓷器的发展和统治者的喜好脱不开关系。青花瓷上我们肉眼所见的蓝色，在封建社会的历朝历代就不受重视，元代统治阶层最喜欢的颜色也是白色。即使是在青花瓷大为发展的明代也并没有以蓝为贵。但是，明代的统治者却喜欢蓝色色调的青花瓷。这对当时制瓷业的影响是显著的。“上有所好，下必甚焉”，皇帝的审美很能影响一个时代的审美，同时很多时候也能代表一个时代的审美。

永乐青花瓷压手杯，北京故宫博物院藏

According to historical records, eight years of Xuande, the ruler on a one-time issue of 44,3500 pieces of production tasks.From this also visible, blue-and-white porcelain at that time has been able to mass-produced.Whether mass production is possible is also a key factor in winning the market.At the same time, the Ming Dynasty Zheng He had several times to go to the Western Ocean, there is speculation that Zheng He in each voyage, return to the time is likely to bring back Su Maleqing.

The Green Flower Cricket Cricket Cricket Canister in the Ming and Xuande Period

Enough raw materials, complete technology, ruler’s love, Ming Dynasty’s blue-and-white porcelain development can be said to be all ready, it is difficult not to go to glory!