In the sixth exhibition hall of Henan Museum, there is a dazzling porcelain, which is the Yuan Dynasty blue and white cloud and dragon pattern jade pot spring vase. This vase was unearthed in a Ming Dynasty tomb in Xingyang, Henan Province in 1963. Based on its body, glaze, blue and white characteristics and production technology, relevant experts believe that it is a work of the Yuan Dynasty. The bottle is 39.4 cm high and 9.3 cm in diameter. The mouth is open, the neck is thin, the belly is drooping, and the feet are circled. Blue and white cloud and dragon patterns are painted from the neck to the abdomen. The blue and white are rich in color and have black spots. The bottle is made of two joints, with obvious joint marks, which is also a distinctive feature of Yuan Dynasty porcelain. The jade pot spring bottle is a type of bottle created during the Northern Song Dynasty. It is named after the word "jade pot precedes spring" in a Song Dynasty poem. After the Yuan Dynasty, it was fired in various kilns in the north and south. Its shape is tall and beautiful.
The dragon is a symbol of the Chinese nation. Ceramic artists of all ages have used it as a decorative theme and used different expression techniques to reflect its artistic charm. The dragon pattern painted on this bottle has a fierce image. The long body of the dragon wraps around the bottle body, showing its majestic and majestic momentum while flying. With the background of the cloud pattern, it also has the sky-shaking power of passing through clouds and spreading rain. It is a symbol of the Yuan Dynasty. Blue and white porcelain is a rare artistic masterpiece.
Blue and white porcelain is made of cobalt oxide as raw material, painted on unfired plain body, and then fired with a layer of transparent glaze. Because the decorative patterns are painted under the glaze, it is also called underglaze. It is characterized by strong tinting power, bright color, little influence from the atmosphere in the kiln, wide firing range and stable color. White ground and blue color, clear and elegant, have the artistic effect of traditional Chinese ink painting. In addition, the blue and white patterns are decorated under the glaze, which will never fade and are deeply loved by people.
Regarding the origin of blue and white, with the progress of archaeological excavations in recent years, it has been proven that it originated in the Tang Dynasty. In 1975 and 1983, two batches of blue and white porcelain specimens were unearthed from the Tangcheng site in Yangzhou, Jiangsu, and the underglaze blue color painted on them is clearly visible. Judging from the shape of the device, it is a pillow piece from the Tang Dynasty. Regarding its place of origin, based on the results of the tire and glaze tests, it was proven that it was fired in the kiln of Gongxian County, Henan Province. According to new archaeological discoveries in recent years, it is indeed proved that the Tang blue and white flowers were fired at the kilns in Gongxian County, Henan Province.
Blue and white porcelain has been successfully fired since the Yuan Dynasty, and the Jingdezhen kiln in Jiangxi Province is the most representative. The cobalt materials used in Yuan Dynasty blue and white were imported and domestic. The imported material contains high iron content and low manganese content, so the hair color is rich and bright. There are black crystal spots on the glaze surface, which penetrate deep into the fetal bones and feel concave when touched by hand. The domestic blue and white material has lighter hair color and no dark spots. This Yuan Dynasty blue and white jade pot spring vase with cloud and dragon patterns collected by the Henan Museum is an outstanding product fired by Jingdezhen Kiln using imported cobalt materials. Shape: Porcelain in various historical periods of our country have different styles, and different styles are first reflected in the shape. The shapes of blue and white porcelain in the Yuan Dynasty include both inheritance and innovation, such as jade pots, spring vases, plum vases, etc., which are obviously inherited The style of the Song Dynasty. The mouth is open, the neck is slender, the abdomen is drooping, and the round feet are slightly tilted. With the increase in the excavation of archaeological data, the past understanding that the shape of blue and white flowers in the Yuan Dynasty was larger and thicker has been rewritten. In the blue and white flowers of the Yuan Dynasty, there are not only large plates, large bowls, large bottles, large jars and other utensils, but also smaller utensils with exquisite shapes like this jade pot spring vase. This jade pot spring bottle is a typical work of the late Yuan Dynasty. The mouth of the Yuhu Chun bottle has a larger curvature and is in the shape of a trumpet. The neck is significantly thicker than in the early Yuan Dynasty, and the sagging abdomen gradually develops into hypertrophy. The overall shape of the vase transitions from simple to steady. It is a comparative example of the late Yuan Dynasty. Representative artifacts.
Decoration: The decoration of Yuan blue and white is to a certain extent influenced by the painting style of the literati at that time. There are many freehand painting methods, rich themes, and a wide range of materials. Some also draw on the patterns of silk fabrics at that time. The characteristics of Yuan blue and white patterns are: the composition of large-scale utensils is rigorous and dense, with many layers. One utensil may have as many as seven or eight layers, making the picture appear fuller. Although there are many layers, they are handled properly, with clear priorities and seamless integration, giving people a sense of magnificence, elegance, harmony and perfection. But there are also smaller decorations that are characterized by sparseness and liveliness. Dragon patterns are more common in Yuan blue and white porcelain and are one of the main decorations of Yuan blue and white porcelain. The dragon is a legendary mythical creature that can walk, fly, swim, and control the wind and rain. Therefore, it is represented on porcelain in different dynamics, including sea water dragons, cloud dragons, etc. Since the Tang Dynasty, dragon patterns have been closely related to imperial power, and dragon patterns have become a symbol of imperial power. The dragon patterns of the past dynasties are different and have their own outstanding characteristics of the times. The cloud and dragon pattern painted on this blue and white jade pot spring vase represents the basic characteristics of the cloud and dragon pattern in the late Yuan Dynasty. It still uses the dragon as the theme decoration, and clouds as the auxiliary decoration. Dragon heads during this period are generally smaller, with longer upper and lower lips, a slender body, a ridge on the back, and antlers pointing backwards, like antlers. Most have three or four claws, but there are also five claws. The dragon on the bottle has five claws, which are powerful. The scales on the dragon's body painted on this vase are grid-like, which is also one of the main features of dragon patterns in the Yuan Dynasty. The cloud pattern painted is Ruyi Head Streamer Cloud, which means that its cloud corners are very long and resemble streamers. This is also an important feature of cloud patterns as auxiliary decorations in the Yuan Dynasty.
Blue and white: According to a large number of physical evidence unearthed and handed down, there are roughly three types of blue and white in the Yuan Dynasty. First, imported cobalt material (from the Islamic region) is used. It contains less manganese and more iron. Therefore, the color is rich and bright. There are black crystal spots on the glaze. When you touch it with your hands, it feels like it is sunken into the fetal bone. The second is to use domestic cobalt material, which contains less iron and is light in color. There are no black crystal spots on the glaze and the decoration is relatively simple.
The third is to combine imported cobalt materials with domestic cobalt materials. Combining rich and light hair colors. The blue and white of this jade pot spring vase is made of imported cobalt material, and the color is rich and vivid. Especially its Ruyi head moiré pattern, which not only has prominent color crystallization spots, but also has obvious halo characteristics. It represents the characteristics of Yuan Dynasty blue and white using imported cobalt materials.
Fetal glaze: The fetus of Yuan blue and white is pure white and clean. It was developed on the basis of the blue and white porcelain of the Song Dynasty. The fetal bones are firm and heavy. In addition, the alumina content in the tire is slightly higher and the mechanical strength is greater. Therefore, we see relatively more large items of Yuan blue and white porcelain. However, compared with Ming and Qing blue and white, Yuan blue and white porcelain is not as meticulously washed as in Ming and Qing Dynasties. Therefore, there are many blisters and iron spots on the sand bottom. At the same time, due to the high iron content in the tire, flint red spots can be seen wherever the tire is exposed. The flint red spots on the exposed feet of this jade pot spring vase are very obvious. In addition, its glaze is white and bluish, crystal clear and translucent, which is also a notable feature of Yuan blue and white glaze.
Craftsmanship: The carcasses of bottles, cans, pots, etc. in Yuan blue and white are made in sections and spliced ??together. The seams are generally very obvious. The interfaces are not carefully trimmed and are obvious when touched by hand. Feeling of unevenness. There are obvious seams on the abdomen of this jade pot spring bottle, which can not only be touched, but also visible to us. This is also an important feature that the porcelain craftsmen at that time left for future generations to identify Yuan blue and white porcelain.
The successful firing of blue and white porcelain in the Yuan Dynasty was of epoch-making significance in the history of Chinese ceramic development. But there are few handed down from generation to generation. According to incomplete statistics, there are probably more than 300 pieces handed down from generation to generation, and there are more than 100 pieces in China. The two most famous ones are Yuan blue and white porcelain stored in Gao'an, Jiangxi and Baoding, Hebei. There are currently very few known collections of Yuan blue and white porcelain in Henan Province, and only this one is in the Henan Museum. Therefore, Yuan blue and white porcelain is extremely precious among handed down porcelain.