How to distinguish between official kilns and private kilns in Chenghua porcelain bowls of the Ming Dynasty?

In the ceramic collection market, some novice collectors are still confused about the identification of official kilns and private kilns. In fact, the difference between the two porcelains is mainly reflected in many aspects such as the purpose of making porcelain products, style design, production location, raw material selection, process standards, finished product selection, and laws and regulations. Next, Shopkeeper Wang from Jingdezhen will briefly talk about the differences between official kilns and private kilns.

1. Purpose of production

Usually, official kilns have two main purposes of producing porcelain for daily use and sacrificial porcelain.

Compared with official kilns, folk kiln products are mainly daily practical porcelain, but the production quality is relatively backward and the shapes are not very particular. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the production of porcelain for export by private kilns was unprecedentedly large, and it developed to the point where foreign businessmen designed patterns, and then kilns in various places fired and provided them according to the drawings. Now it seems that this should be the biggest highlight of the development of private kilns in the Ming and Qing Dynasties surpassing the official kilns.

2. Style design

The style design of official kiln porcelain in the Ming and Qing Dynasties mainly includes two aspects: shape and decoration, both designed by the inner government. The "Inner Palace" is the department within the palace responsible for supervising the manufacturing of instruments, also known as the "Internal Affairs Department". Because the rulers were involved and involved in the styles of official kiln utensils, the production styles of official kiln utensils in their respective periods were also inseparable from the rulers' aesthetics. At the same time, most of the designers were famous artists from the painting academy, so the patterns and decorations were “all paintings left by people from the painting academy in the palace at that time.” Therefore, the design quality of the official kilns was very high. Folk kilns are relatively simple in terms of style design. As long as the public likes them and the merchants are satisfied, they will have a bright future. In addition, because there are few people involved, the style can be flexibly used and changed at any time according to the actual situation. Therefore, compared with official kilns, folk kilns are more casual and less formal in style design.

3. Production place

Lampu recorded in "Jingdezhen Ceramics Record": "In the second year of Hongwu, a factory was set up at the foot of Zhushan Mountain in the town to make pottery for the upper reaches, and it was called the official kiln. "In the 35th year of Hongwu's reign, the pottery factory was transformed into an imperial factory. .

In the Qing Dynasty, in addition to the official kilns produced by the imperial factory in Jingdezhen, the Kang, Yong and Qian dynasties also used the white-filled porcelain bodies fired by the imperial factory to make enamels at the Qing Palace Manufacturing Office. Such products can be regarded as the best in official kilns. Due to the short production time and limited number of products, it can only be regarded as a special case in the history of official kiln porcelain production.

The firing sites of folk kilns are very complex. The territory of Ming and Qing Dynasties was vast, and people adapted to local conditions in the north and south of the Yangtze River and the Yellow River. Among them, the more successful folk kilns include Jingdezhen kiln, Longquan kiln, Ding kiln, Yaozhou kiln, and Dezhou kiln. Hua kiln, Boshan kiln, etc. are too numerous in number and system to be discussed in depth. Relatively speaking, the production of official kilns in the Ming and Qing Dynasties was much simpler. It was just a branch of the Jingdezhen kiln system, and the aspects involved were not complicated.

4. Selection of raw materials

The raw materials for making porcelain are mainly clay, glaze and color materials. The ruling class controls the state power. In order to reflect its supreme status and superiority, it often uses its power to restrict the free production and development of folk kiln porcelain.

1. Fetusi

Historical data proves that in the Yuan Dynasty, "yutu" monopolized by the rulers had appeared. In the Ming Dynasty, the land was also called "official land" and "Macang official land". Due to the ruling class's monopoly and exclusive use of this type of high-quality ceramic raw materials, the quality of the porcelain bodies of official kiln wares is outstanding, far superior to that of Jingdezhen private kiln products of the same period.

2. Glaze and colored materials

The surface of official porcelain is generally coated with a thin layer of glaze, which is made of quartz, feldspar, borax, clay, etc. become. Porcelain makers dilute it with water, apply it on the surface of the porcelain body, and form a layer of glass glaze after firing. Glaze usually has the function of protecting, decorating and beautifying porcelain. Because the glaze usually contains various trace elements, they will produce different glaze colors under different circumstances. Therefore, porcelain makers often take advantage of this feature to adjust the element composition in the glaze and change the glaze color, resulting in glaze colors such as copper red, cobalt blue, iron black, and golden red.

When making colored porcelain, a lot of colored materials are needed. Some color materials are mixed into the glaze and some are used alone.

In the early days of colored porcelain, because the production was not yet popular, the technology was advanced and the cost was high. Only imperial factories had the relevant technology and financial resources to develop and apply it. In more cases, rulers strictly prohibited private kilns from firing colored glazes without permission.

Those who violate the regulations will be punished extremely cruelly. Therefore, in terms of the application of color materials, private kilns have lost the right to use them, let alone compete with official kilns. Naturally, the color diversity of porcelain cannot keep pace with official kilns.

5. Production technology

For the country’s supreme ruler, whether it is daily use of porcelain in the palace, gifts given to ministers and foreign envoys, or sacrificial porcelain from the country, , overseas trade porcelain, are all related to national honor and imperial power and dignity. For this reason, the rulers had to have strict requirements, ignore the cost of work, and strive for perfection. These factors prompted Jingdezhen Imperial Factory to gather talents from all over the world. Therefore, highly skilled porcelain craftsmen, using the best raw materials of the dynasty, with the most rigorous production attitude, and under the majestic imperial power, were bound to be able to produce the highest level of porcelain at that time. In view of these reasons, in the history of Chinese porcelain production, official kiln porcelain has always been regarded as the highest peak of porcelain production in that period. Not only did the quality surpass that of private kilns, but the decoration and shape were also enough to guide the development direction of porcelain production nationwide.

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