Ancient Celadon of Zhejiang (2 Volumes)

郑建华 / 谢西营 / 张馨月Zhejiang People's Publishing House · ChinaFeb 2024

Rating 4.2
Word count
374K words
Chapters
43
ISBN
9787213107528

Tags

History Books Famous KilnsGe KilnCraft HeritageCeramic HistoryArtifact ResearchOfficial KilnsZhejiang Kilns

Summary

Porcelain production began with celadon. From its birth in the Xia-Shang period, more than three thousand years of official and private kilns produced a succession of famous wares. It may be said that "half of ceramic history lies in Zhejiang."

This book traces the long, fluctuating history of ancient Zhejiang celadon through five stages: origins, growth, development, peak, and decline. Dedicated chapters also examine and distinguish tribute kilns, official kilns, and Ge kilns, and trace the export of celadon and the spread of production techniques.

As the first work to systematically organize the archaeological findings on ancient Zhejiang celadon and to reflect the full scope of research on it, this book clarifies the development thread and the production and management systems of ancient Zhejiang celadon, summarizes its historical achievements, and reveals its important place in the history of Chinese and indeed human civilization.

Editor's review

Zhejiang Ancient Celadon (2 Volumes), led by Researcher Zheng Jianhua of the Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, is a large-scale professional catalogue and research report integrating scholarship, documentation, and artistry. The book systematically traces the complete development sequence of Zhejiang ceramics from Shang-Zhou proto-porcelain to Ming-Qing celadon. Its core value lies in drawing on a wealth of recent archaeological excavations, especially scientific research on key kiln sites such as Yue ware, Longquan ware, and the Southern Song official kilns, to provide in-depth interpretation and visual presentation of the technological evolution, period characteristics, and cultural connotations of Zhejiang celadon. The high-resolution artifact photographs, line drawings, kiln-site maps, and scientific testing data included in the book not only provide precious primary materials for professional researchers but are also of considerable aesthetic value in themselves. In the editor's view, the publication of this book marks a new stage of synthesis and summation in the study of Zhejiang celadon. It is not a simple album of artifacts but an interpretation of objects within the broad context of history, technology, trade, and cultural exchange, revealing how celadon evolved from utilitarian ware into art and became an important carrier of Chinese culture and a global commodity. For readers who wish to go beyond merely appreciating decoration and glaze colors and seek to understand the "how and why" behind them, this book offers solid, clear, and profound answers.

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Reading tips

  1. It is recommended to first read the overview section in Volume One to establish the historical framework and technological thread of Zhejiang celadon's development, then study the plates in Volume Two alongside it
  2. Keep notes while reading, focusing on the evolution points and archaeological evidence for body and glaze, forms, and decorative techniques in each period
  3. Reading this book in conjunction with the author's other papers or related kiln-site archaeological reports will provide a more multidimensional understanding

About the publisher

Zhejiang People's Publishing House China · Founded in 1951

Zhejiang People's Publishing House is a comprehensive publisher known for its social science, history and foreign literature titles, covering philosophy, politics, law, economics, culture and history. Among the books in the library catalogue, its foreign literature list includes Yasunari Kawabata's Snow Country and The Old Capital in well-known translations, as well as Wuthering Heights; its history list is represented by Dangnian Mingyue's Ming Dynasty series, and its politics list by Zhejiang New Discourse. Authors represented include Yasunari Kawabata, Ye Weiqu, Tang Yuemei, Dangnian Mingyue, Emily Brontë and René Wellek, with Wellek's Theory of Literature (newly revised edition) among its titles in literary theory. Beyond these areas, the press also publishes works on literary appreciation and social culture, giving it a profile that combines classic translations, popular history and academic works. As publicly available information is limited, other details are not covered here.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 浙江古代青瓷（上册）
  3. 第一章 总论
  4. 第二章 滥觞期
  5. 第一节 概述
  6. 第二节 夏商周印纹硬陶与原始青瓷
  7. 第三节 秦汉原始青瓷与印纹硬陶
  8. 第四节 工艺成就
  9. 第三章 成长期
  10. 第一节 概述
  11. 第二节 成熟青瓷出现
  12. 第三节 早期越窑
  13. 第四节 越窑以外的早期青瓷窑场
  14. 第五节 工艺成就
  15. 第四章 发展期
  16. 第一节 概述
  17. 第二节 中期越窑
  18. 第三节 龙泉窑的兴起
  19. 第四节 其他青瓷窑场
  20. 第五节 工艺成就
  21. 浙江古代青瓷（下册）
  22. 第五章 鼎盛期
  23. 第一节 概述
  24. 第二节 晚期越窑——南宋早期
  25. 第三节 龙泉窑的兴盛
  26. 第四节 杭州乌龟山窑与老虎洞窑
  27. 第五节 其他瓷业窑场
  28. 第六节 工艺成就
  29. 第六章 衰落期
  30. 第一节 概述
  31. 第二节 龙泉窑的没落——明代中晚期至晚清
  32. 第三节 青花瓷业的兴起
  33. 第七章 贡瓷、官窑与哥窑
  34. 第一节 概述
  35. 第二节 贡瓷
  36. 第三节 官窑
  37. 第四节 哥窑
  38. 第八章 青瓷的输出与制作工艺的传播
  39. 第一节 概述
  40. 第二节 在境内的输出
  41. 第三节 对海外的输出
  42. 第四节 浙江古代青瓷制作工艺的传播
  43. 后记

FAQ

What is the book's Douban rating? As checked, this book currently has no rating on the Douban Reading platform. This is usually because professional academic works have a relatively concentrated readership and few reviewers, but it enjoys an outstanding reputation in professional circles and is recognized as an authoritative reference work.
What is the professional background of author Zheng Jianhua? Zheng Jianhua is a researcher at the Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, long engaged in ceramic archaeology and research, with particular depth in the archaeological excavation and study of ancient kiln sites in Zhejiang. He has led or participated in multiple important kiln-site archaeological projects and has produced substantial scholarly work, making him one of the authoritative scholars in the field of Zhejiang celadon research.
What are the main differences between this book and other celadon catalogues on the market? The main difference lies in its strong academic orientation and archaeological foundation. This book does not merely display exquisite objects but focuses on systematically explaining the production system, technological changes, and social-historical background of celadon based on the latest archaeological excavation materials and scientific analysis. Its arguments are rigorous and its information density is high; it is a research-oriented work.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

郑建华 Author

Public information about Zheng Jianhua is limited; only three works by this author are currently known, spanning history, computer science, and social culture. The representative works include Zhejiang Ancient Celadon (2 volumes), which shows a systematic treatment of this specialized subject; Development Report on Intelligent Knowledge Services for Engineering Science and Technology Big Data (2022), which indicates attention to frontier issues in engineering technology and big-data knowledge services; and a study on the preparation and properties of cobalt-based heterojunction visible-light-responsive photocatalytic materials, which concerns specific research in materials science. Judging from this range of subjects, Zheng Jianhua's writing combines topical focus, documentary value, and an interdisciplinary character, encompassing both organized works for readers of history and culture and specialized reports and research texts in technical fields, while the impact of these works awaits further public information.

谢西营 Author · China

Public information about Xie Xiying is currently limited. He is known as a Chinese author, and the library holds one work by him: the two-volume Zhejiang Ancient Celadon, classified as a history title. Judging from this surviving work, Xie Xiying writes about ancient celadon in Zhejiang, focusing on the development of porcelain and its regional cultural context. The book appears to be a history written for general readers, likely organized around historical facts, objects, and kiln-industry background rather than purely theoretical discussion, making it suitable for those interested in ceramic history and local culture. Because further biographical information is unavailable, his education, profession, and writing career cannot be confirmed; any assessment of him must rest on this single work and awaits more material.

张馨月 Author

Zhang Xinyue is an author with limited publicly available information, and two Chinese works are currently known. The first is Zhejiang Ancient Celadon (2 volumes), a history title that traces the development of ancient celadon in Zhejiang, reflecting an interest in local material culture and ceramic history. The second is The Art of Conversation Lies in Empathy: Learning to Be a Warm and Interesting Person, a personal-growth book that starts from everyday communication and putting oneself in others' shoes to discuss how to interact with people in a more considerate way. The two works differ widely in subject, one leaning toward history and cultural relics and the other close to real life and interpersonal relations, suggesting that the author has tried both knowledge organization and accessible popular writing. Because details such as birth and death dates, nationality and educational background are unavailable, a fuller picture of the author's writing style awaits more works and information.