Chinese Culture >> Chinese Handicrafts >> China Black Pottery
As early as 8, 000 years ago, in the Neolithic Age, earthenware, primitive pottery, were invented and produced along the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, which has been proved true due to archeological findings. There were front-page discoveries. At the early stage of the Neolithic Age, potters had to make by hand. Clay was coiled into ropes and then carefully smoothed using a paddle on the exterior pressed against an anvil on the inside wall. Later till the primitive Yangshao Culture period, potter's wheel was invented, and kiln was bettered, the production of pottery made a leap.
The representative pottery then was red earthenware decorated with black animal and geometric designs. During the Longshan Culture period, end of the Neolithic Age, fast wheel was used and pottery reached a record height, represented by the Black Pottery. The Longshan Black Pottery is the outstanding variety after Yangshao Culture period, It is a kind of culture end of the Neolithic Age before more than 4, 000 years ago.
It's black like a black jade, so call it "Black Pottery Culture". It is the most exquisite works among the Longshan culture pottery. Our products use deposit clay of the Yellow River as raw materials, inherit traditional wheel-making technology, all working procedures are fully handicraft, the works with high collection value, admired and favored by collectors around the world. In the last step of pottery making, water is usually added slowly from the top of the kiln in order to produce thick smoke while extinguishing the charcoal. When this is done, the black pottery comes out.
Following the color-glazed pottery, this was another peak of pottery making in Chinese Neolithic Age (about 10000 to 5000 years ago). It is another great invention of the same aesthetic value with that of the color-glazed pottery in Chinese pottery making craft . This eggshell-like black pottery goblet, unearthed in Shandong Longshan Cultural Relic of the later Neolithic Age in Rizhao County of Shandong Province in northern China, is the best work of Chinese ancient pottery.
The goblet is 26.5 cm in height, and can be divided into 3 parts. The top is a cup with a wide rim, the middle is a sculptured hollow stem, and the bottom looks like an overturning pot. The stem connects the three. The shape of the goblet is elegant and exquisite. The wall of the cup is of the same thickness and is as thin as eggshell. The thinnest part is only 0.2 to 0.3 mm but quite fine, smooth and solid. The surface glitters after long-time polishing. The stem is decorated by sculptured holes and engraved lines, making the goblet even more exquisite. It is now kept in the Shandong Museum.
This kind of goblet only appeared in the early and mid periods of the Longshan Culture in Shandong Province. Perhaps it was the special local material and pottery making techniques that made the goblet so unique. The making of such pottery is of high difficulty even today, and it represents the great achievements of pottery making craft in ancient China. There are only few places on the world where black pottery is created, and the department of Zhangqiu is one of these few places!
Chinese folk art is an important part of the country's extremely rich cultural and art heritage. Chinese folk art has won recognition and praise from experts both at home and abroad for its great variety, sincere rural content, rich flavor of life, distinctive local style, straightforward, natural, flexible, free from affectedness, vivid and its artistic approaches of romanticism. All of this will enhance our life. Our products enjoy a good reputation both at home and abroad and sell well far to America, Europe and Asia as its subtle craft and lively sculpt and excellent quality. We have 10 categories more than 3000 crafts now. Our professional artist design and make new works every day. We will keep on bringing more excellent classic Chinese crafts to you in the future.
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