Chinese people have produced porcelain for a very long time. To some extent, the world became acquainted with China through its chinaware and porcelain, which was often used as a yardstick in evaluating Chinese civilization.For over 2,000 years, Jingdezhen was known as “the porcelain capital” of the world. The City of Jingdezhen in East China’s Jiangxi Province, which was called Xinping in ancient times, began to make porcelain as early as 200BC in the Han Dynasty (206BC-AD220). During the reign of Emperor Jingde (1004-1007) of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), all of the products made here bore the royal Jingde mark, and the name of the city was therefore changed to Jingdezhen (Jingde Town).
For centuries, the city was considered as China’s most important center for porcelain production. Here, ceramics were produced as far back as the Han Dynasty (206-220BC). The imperial porcelain was so exquisite that it was described as being “as white as jade, as bright as a mirror, as thin as paper , with a sound as clear as a bell”.
Today, Jingdezhen remains a national center for porcelain production. The most famous types of porcelain from Jingdezhen are famille -rose porcelain, linglong porcelain, blue-white porcelain and color-glazed porcelain.
Famille-rose porcelainFamille-rose porcelain, so called its pink enamel, first came into being during the Yongzheng reign (1723-1735) in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and continued to be made throughout the Qianlong reign (1736-1795) and beyond. Main materials and techniques used to make the porcelain were all introduced from abroad in the beginning.
When making famille -rose porcelain, craftsmen fired glass whiteness onto plain porcelain, creating patterns with Chinese painting techniques and then baking it in a kiln.
During the Kangxi reign, there were only a few works of famille -rose porcelain, whose color paintings were also very simple — mainly patterns of flowers, clouds and dragons . During the Yongzheng reign, the porcelain enjoyed great improvements. Both the porcelain and decorations produced in this period featured a most delicate quality and brilliant color; these pieces are among the most highly prized works of this type of porcelain.
The famille-rose porcelain produced in the Qianlong reign saw an obvious change — other colors such as green, yellow, blue, carmine or purple, were added to the white porcelain. At that time, the porcelain was no longer as delicate, crystal-like and colorful as that produced in the Yongzheng reign. When it came to the Jiaqing and Daoguang reigns, famille -
rose porcelain mainly inherited a form of traditional development and did not witness much improvement. The ceramic glaze used was not very refined and featured strong hues.
During the Xianfeng and Tongzhi reigns, the composition of famille-rose pictures became quite complicated, although the painting skills were simple and the materials used were rough. The famille-rose porcelain produced during these periods featured
comparatively faint hues, and, in order to make the colors more brilliant, gold was applied to the famille -rose base.
The characteristics listed above are the major criteria used to distinguish famille -rose porcelain produced in different periods during the Qing Dynasty.
Famille-rose porcelain wares in the Qing Dynasty mainly included pots, bottles, wine vessels, jars, basins, plates, urns, boxes, and so on. The patterns mostly included dragons and phoenixes, flowers, landscapes, human figures and themes from legends. Subjects on the porcelains often came from paintings of famous painters at that time.
Linglong porcelain
Linglong porcelain was created and developed on the basis of pieced 
work during the Xuande reign of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Reputed as “porcelain inlaid with glass”, linglong porcelain is famous both at home and abroad for its exquisitely carved patterns and glittering, translucent appeal.
Grain-sized holes were hollowed out in the thin roughcast and the glaze was applied several times to cover them. Then, the half-finished products were baked in kilns to produce linglong porcelain.
Characterized by pierced ornamentation, the porcelain saw some developments in terms of technique in the Qing Dynasty. During this period, craftsmen ingeniously integrated the techniques of making blue-and-white porcelain with that of linglong porcelain to create the blue-and-white linglong porcelain much loved by the people. The dark-green transparent linglong designs and emerald-green blue-and-white patterns served as a foil to each other, creating a unique sense of beauty.
Linglong wares were generally limited to small objects, such as cups, brush pots and covered jars. The decoration was sometimes unglazed, left either white or enhanced with gilding or colored glazes.
（Source: chinaculture.org）
