The Porcelain Industry at Jingdezhen
Porcelain is a ceramic material that is prized for its translucence, hardness, and smoothness. Porcelainwas first produced in China, perhaps as early as ᴄ.ᴇ. 100–200. By the Tang period (ᴄ.ᴇ. 618–960), porcelain objects were being exported from China to the Islamic world. Over the centuries, manufacture of porcelain for both domestic consumption and export grew. The large scale of production for export in the Yuan period (1279–1368) is indicated by a shipwrecked transport vessel bound for Japan that was found off the Korean coast in 1976. It was loaded with some seventeen thousand pieces of export wares (goods to be sold). Included among the porcelains were many Longquan celadon (a particularly beautiful type of green porcelain from the period) and white or bluish-white porcelains from Jingdezhen.
The Yuan period was pivotal in the history of porcelain for several reasons. There was a definitive concentration of production at the Jingdezhen kilns (ovens) in the southeastern province of Jiangxi. This region was favored by abundant concentrations of the necessary special clays, as well as forests for wood to fire the kilns and a relatively central location well connected for water transport and distribution. The Yuan rulers established an official agency to supervise ceramic production at Jingdezhen in the thirteenth century,and it continued as the official governmental porcelain center under the succeeding Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties. In addition to official kilns that supplied wares for palace use and for diplomatic gifts or awards to officials, the Jingdezhen region had many private kilns that produced wares for broad domestic consumption and for export.
The concentration of resources, artisan expertise, and imperial prestige at Jingdezhen led to the development of a porcelain industry of national and international scale. Specialization of labor and rationalization of manufacture, the process of improving the means and methods of production to improve efficiency in mass production, characterized porcelain production as it did later industries (and some earlier productions, such as lacquerware in the Han period, from 206 ʙ.ᴄ.ᴇ. to ᴄ.ᴇ. 220). By the mid-sixteenth century, porcelain production involved more than ten thousand craftsmen in the region, and a single piece might undergo seventy-two processes before completion. The result was a centralized and sophisticated craft industry of vast scale that supplied markets ranging from the imperial households to export markets in Southeast Asia and, eventually, Europe and America.
In terms of technique and style, the Yuan period was important for introducing painted decoration in which copper-red and, most famously, cobalt-blue pigments were used to paint the porcelain and then covered over with a transparent protective glaze, known as underglazing. Although the previous Song period(ᴄ.ᴇ. 960–1279) had favored wares decorated in a single color with pictorial designs limited to carved or molded patterns, earlier precedents existed for lively pictorial designs brushed on ceramics. Ink-like iron oxide or colored enamel pigments were used on Cizhou types , and painted designs appeared on the still earlier Changsha wares of the Tang period. These were not porcelains but less refined stoneware, fired at lower temperatures, and Yuan-period Jingdezhen saw the first large-scale combination of porcelain technique with underglaze painting. The taste for underglaze blue-and-white porcelains may have been both stimulated and enabled by the international connections of the Mongol rulers of the Yuan regime. The best sources for the cobalt used for the blue ornamentation came from Western Asia and so were more easily supplied during the period of Mongol domination of Asia, with its open trade routes. Much early blue-andwhite production seems to have been aimed at export markets in the Middle and Near East and Southeast Asia. Some of the design of these wares may have aimed at replacing cruder painted Near Eastern wares with more durable and refined porcelains decorated in similar style, and much of the demand that stimulated production of blue-and-white wares may have originated from Arab clients in West Asia.
One of the great advantages of underglaze-painted decoration was its adaptability to a wide range of tastes and markets.Skilled painting specialists produced lively designs of decorative flowers and plants,dragons, ducks, fish, or figural scenes drawn from popular drama, as the occasion demanded; in addition,designs in Islamic script or incorporating Tibetan Buddhist motifs were produced in large numbers for those markets and recipients.
1
Porcelain is a ceramic material that is prized for its translucence, hardness, and smoothness. Porcelainwas first produced in China, perhaps as early as ᴄ.ᴇ. 100–200. By the Tang period (ᴄ.ᴇ. 618–960), porcelain objects were being exported from China to the Islamic world. Over the centuries, manufacture of porcelain for both domestic consumption and export grew. The large scale of production for export in the Yuan period (1279–1368) is indicated by a shipwrecked transport vessel bound for Japan that was found off the Korean coast in 1976. It was loaded with some seventeen thousand pieces of export wares (goods to be sold). Included among the porcelains were many Longquan celadon (a particularly beautiful type of green porcelain from the period) and white or bluish-white porcelains from Jingdezhen.
According to paragraph 1, which TWO of the following are true about porcelain? To receive credit, you must select TWO answer choices.
AIts use spread to other parts of the world from China.
BIt started being produced for export during the Yuan period.
CIt caused a transport vessel bound for Japan to sink.
DIts appearance could differ depending on where it was made.
2
The Yuan period was pivotal in the history of porcelain for several reasons. There was a definitive concentration of production at the Jingdezhen kilns (ovens) in the southeastern province of Jiangxi. This region was favored by abundant concentrations of the necessary special clays, as well as forests for wood to fire the kilns and a relatively central location well connected for water transport and distribution. The Yuan rulers established an official agency to supervise ceramic production at Jingdezhen in the thirteenth century,and it continued as the official governmental porcelain center under the succeeding Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties. In addition to official kilns that supplied wares for palace use and for diplomatic gifts or awards to officials, the Jingdezhen region had many private kilns that produced wares for broad domestic consumption and for export.
The word “ succeeding” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Arising
Bpowerful
Cfollowing
Dprosperous
3
The Yuan period was pivotal in the history of porcelain for several reasons. There was a definitive concentration of production at the Jingdezhen kilns (ovens) in the southeastern province of Jiangxi. This region was favored by abundant concentrations of the necessary special clays, as well as forests for wood to fire the kilns and a relatively central location well connected for water transport and distribution. The Yuan rulers established an official agency to supervise ceramic production at Jingdezhen in the thirteenth century,and it continued as the official governmental porcelain center under the succeeding Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties. In addition to official kilns that supplied wares for palace use and for diplomatic gifts or awards to officials, the Jingdezhen region had many private kilns that produced wares for broad domestic consumption and for export.
According to paragraph 2, each of the following helps explain the concentration of porcelain production in Jiangxi province during the Yuanperiod EXCEPT
Alarge numbers of government agencies
Beasy access to water transport
Cabundant supplies of fuel to fire kilns
Dabundant supplies of suitable clays
4
The Yuan period was pivotal in the history of porcelain for several reasons. There was a definitive concentration of production at the Jingdezhen kilns (ovens) in the southeastern province of Jiangxi. This region was favored by abundant concentrations of the necessary special clays, as well as forests for wood to fire the kilns and a relatively central location well connected for water transport and distribution. The Yuan rulers established an official agency to supervise ceramic production at Jingdezhen in the thirteenth century,and it continued as the official governmental porcelain center under the succeeding Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties. In addition to official kilns that supplied wares for palace use and for diplomatic gifts or awards to officials, the Jingdezhen region had many private kilns that produced wares for broad domestic consumption and for export.
Which of the following can be inferred from paragraph 2 about the Yuan rulers of China?
AThey established kilns in areas of Jiangxi that previously had no porcelain industry.
BThey used goods produced at Jingdezhen to advance their political goals.
CThey created new routes for transporting and distributing porcelains made at Jingdezhen.
DThey appointed officials to ensure that private kilns met the same standards as official kilns.
5
The concentration of resources, artisan expertise, and imperial prestige at Jingdezhen led to the development of a porcelain industry of national and international scale. Specialization of labor and rationalization of manufacture, the process of improving the means and methods of production to improve efficiency in mass production, characterized porcelain production as it did later industries (and some earlier productions, such as lacquerware in the Han period, from 206 ʙ.ᴄ.ᴇ. to ᴄ.ᴇ. 220). By the mid-sixteenth century, porcelain production involved more than ten thousand craftsmen in the region, and a single piece might undergo seventy-two processes before completion. The result was a centralized and sophisticated craft industry of vast scale that supplied markets ranging from the imperial households to export markets in Southeast Asia and, eventually, Europe and America.
Paragraph 3 supports which of the following statements about porcelain objects produced at Jingdezhen?
AThey were produced by craftsmen skilled in a variety of different tasks.
BSome were shaped to imitate lacquerware produced in the Han period.
CSome underwent multiple processes in their creation.
DTheir export was restricted to markets inside Asia.
6
In terms of technique and style, the Yuan period was important for introducing painted decoration in which copper-red and, most famously, cobalt-blue pigments were used to paint the porcelain and then covered over with a transparent protective glaze, known as underglazing. Although the previous Song period(ᴄ.ᴇ. 960–1279) had favored wares decorated in a single color with pictorial designs limited to carved or molded patterns, earlier precedents existed for lively pictorial designs brushed on ceramics. Ink-like iron oxide or colored enamel pigments were used on Cizhou types , and painted designs appeared on the still earlier Changsha wares of the Tang period. These were not porcelains but less refined stoneware, fired at lower temperatures, and Yuan-period Jingdezhen saw the first large-scale combination of porcelain technique with underglaze painting. The taste for underglaze blue-and-white porcelains may have been both stimulated and enabled by the international connections of the Mongol rulers of the Yuan regime. The best sources for the cobalt used for the blue ornamentation came from Western Asia and so were more easily supplied during the period of Mongol domination of Asia, with its open trade routes. Much early blue-andwhite production seems to have been aimed at export markets in the Middle and Near East and Southeast Asia. Some of the design of these wares may have aimed at replacing cruder painted Near Eastern wares with more durable and refined porcelains decorated in similar style, and much of the demand that stimulated production of blue-and-white wares may have originated from Arab clients in West Asia.
Why does the author include the information that “Ink-like iron oxide or colored enamel pigments were used on Cizhou types ” and that “ painted designs appeared on the still earlier Changsha wares ”?
ATo help explain why single-color wares decorated with pictorial designs were favored in the Song period
BTo explain why less refined stoneware was used for Cizhou and Changsha wares
CTo provide examples of Chinese ceramics that incorporate painted designs before Yuan porcelains did
DTo help explain why copper-red and cobalt blue were the colors used to paint Yuan porcelains
7
In terms of technique and style, the Yuan period was important for introducing painted decoration in which copper-red and, most famously, cobalt-blue pigments were used to paint the porcelain and then covered over with a transparent protective glaze, known as underglazing. Although the previous Song period(ᴄ.ᴇ. 960–1279) had favored wares decorated in a single color with pictorial designs limited to carved or molded patterns, earlier precedents existed for lively pictorial designs brushed on ceramics. Ink-like iron oxide or colored enamel pigments were used on Cizhou types , and painted designs appeared on the still earlier Changsha wares of the Tang period. These were not porcelains but less refined stoneware, fired at lower temperatures, and Yuan-period Jingdezhen saw the first large-scale combination of porcelain technique with underglaze painting. The taste for underglaze blue-and-white porcelains may have been both stimulated and enabled by the international connections of the Mongol rulers of the Yuan regime. The best sources for the cobalt used for the blue ornamentation came from Western Asia and so were more easily supplied during the period of Mongol domination of Asia, with its open trade routes. Much early blue-andwhite production seems to have been aimed at export markets in the Middle and Near East and Southeast Asia. Some of the design of these wares may have aimed at replacing cruder painted Near Eastern wares with more durable and refined porcelains decorated in similar style, and much of the demand that stimulated production of blue-and-white wares may have originated from Arab clients in West Asia.
According to paragraph 4, how were the international connections of the Mongol rulers of the Yuan regime significant for porcelain production?
AThey enabled artisans from Jingdezhen to gain new techniques for producing underglaze painting from West Asia.
BThey caused Yuan leaders to develop a taste for ornamentation similar to that of leaders of the Tang period.
CThey allowed China to import cobalt from Western Asia and to export porcelains to the rest of Asia and the Middle and Near East.
DThey brought about trade in which Chinese merchants exchanged refined porcelains for cruder painted Near Eastern wares.
8
One of the great advantages of underglaze-painted decoration was its adaptability to a wide range of tastes and markets.Skilled painting specialists produced lively designs of decorative flowers and plants,dragons, ducks, fish, or figural scenes drawn from popular drama, as the occasion demanded; in addition,designs in Islamic script or incorporating Tibetan Buddhist motifs were produced in large numbers for those markets and recipients.
Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
ASkilled specialists made lively decorative designs before turning to designs with religious scripts and motifs.
BMany designs were of flowers and plants, dragons, ducks, fish, or figural scenes drawn from popular drama.
CSkilled painters produced a wide variety of designs to suit different occasions and markets.
DSkilled painting specialists produced various lively designs and sometimes used Islamic script as decoration.
9
Porcelain is a ceramic material that is prized for its translucence, hardness, and smoothness. Porcelainwas first produced in China, perhaps as early as ᴄ.ᴇ. 100–200. By the Tang period (ᴄ.ᴇ. 618–960), porcelain objects were being exported from China to the Islamic world. [■] Over the centuries, manufacture of porcelain for both domestic consumption and export grew. The large scale of production for export in the Yuan period (1279–1368) is indicated by a shipwrecked transport vessel bound for Japan that was found off the Korean coast in 1976. It was loaded with some seventeen thousand pieces of export wares (goods to be sold). [■] Included among the porcelains were many Longquan celadon (a particularly beautiful type of green porcelain from the period) and white or bluish-white porcelains from Jingdezhen.
Look at the four squaresthat indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage
Wooden boxes in which the porcelains had been packed were marked with the date 1323.
Where would the sentence best fit？Click on a square sentence to the passage.
10
Porcelain is a smooth, hard, translucent ceramic material that was first produced in China, perhaps as early as ᴄ.ᴇ. 100–200.
APorcelain production grew over time while changing in style, and Jingdezhen became the center of the porcelain industry because of several favorable factors.
BThe methods used during the Yuan period to rationalize porcelain production were first used at private kilns and became standard practice when they were adopted at official kilns.
CPorcelain with underglaze painting using cobalt-blue pigments first appeared in the Yuan period and was probably aimed at specific export markets, but the technique was adaptable to various tastes.
DPorcelain wares produced at official kilns were of higher quality than those made at private kilns, and it was the official wares that were exported to other parts of the world.
EBy the mid-sixteenth century, porcelain manufacture had improved mass-production methods to produce a large quantity of porcelain to meet domestic and worldwide demands.
FBefore the appearance of underglaze blue-and-white porcelains, most export markets were dominated by painted Near Eastern wares that had been modeled on Changsha wares of the Tang period.
答案：
