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The term Yue ware was first mentioned in chinese poetry, historical account and books on ceramics in Late Tang Period. The term Yue ware is a general term for greenware (celadon) produced in Zhejiang from Eastern Han to Northern Song Period, with production beginning to flourish during the Three Kingdoms era and the Western Jin period and reaching its peak during the Tang and Five Dynasties periods. During the century from the Three Kingdoms to Western Jin (220-316), the kilns of Zhejiang’s Shangyu, the centre of production of Yue Ware, grew from close to ten to more than 60. The Yue kilns during this period produced many vessels which takes on animal-form such as candle stands which looked like the sheep (see below picture) or lion, lamps which looked like bears, as well as bird cups, chicken-head ewers and frog-shaped water-droppers. The bird cup has a straight mouth and a flat base, with a head and feet attached in front, two spread-out wings on the sides, and a tail behind serving as a handle. The cup is both artistic and functional.
The most distinctive of all the Yue form is the chicken-head ewer. The basic form is a jar with a dished mouth, a bird-head spout jutting out from the shoulder, and a thick handle opposite the spout curving from the rim of the mouth to the shoulder. There are small lugs through which a cord can pass. The original form was just a chicken head on a vasewith a dish mouth. As time passed, the chicken head was extended and a handle was attached. Emphasis was on the functional character of the ewer. Since great importance was
attached to rich burials during the three kindgdom and the Western Jin
dynasty, a large amount funerary wares such as modelled granaries (see
below picture on the left), stoves, wells, mills were also produced.
The decorative motifs found
on the wares of the Three Kingdoms included the circular bands and ripples.
During the mid Three Kingdoms period, diamond diapers are impressed on
the shoulders basins, jars, ewers and spittoons. At the end of the
Three Kingdoms, above and below those diamond diaper were were bands of
circles or pearls. Moulded figures such as animal mask, dragons,
tigers, Buddhist figures are luted on the shoulder or bellies of the vessels
(see above picture on the left). During Western Jin, the diamond
diaper and circle band were the main motifs found on Yue wares (see above
pictures).
Towards the end ofthe Western Jin Dyansty, the so-called "Insurrection of the Eight Princes" broke out, ushering in a period of continuous vying for military dominance. The Eastern Jin regime that rules areas south of the Yangtze also became embroiled in internal conflicts and upheavals, and the economic depression affect Zhejiang and the surrounding areas. The decline in production compelled people to cut down on consumption and simple burial was advocated. Shangyu was reduced from a booming production centre to an area with few scattered small kilns. The kilns of Eastern Jin produced only bowls, dishes, cups with ears, cup stands, alms bowls, jars, ewers, inkstones, chicken head ewers and other wares for daily use. Funerary wares were not manufactured then. The decorative motifs were circular bands and brown spots which were relatively easy to employ. Yue ware before Tang possesses several general common features. The body material is pale grey and it generally burns a light reddish brown where exposed in the firing. Small lumps of clay were used as spurs to prevent the vessels from sticking to the floor during firing. As a result, there were pale patches haloed in reddish brown on the base. To grasp the evolution of the shape of some basic vessels, please see the chart. |
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