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Visit Henan, Explore China Episode V: A 1,000-Year-Old Ru Porcelain Vase Still Wows the World Today
Source：dahe.cn
Published：2022-08-12 07:21
Editor's note: In a letter replying to senior experts at the National Museum of China on July 8, 2022, President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed firming up cultural confidence, preserving the fine accomplishments of Chinese civilization and using cultural relics to promote exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations. Henan, with the largest number of ancient kiln sites, has produced the most complete range of ceramic products in China. Generally speaking, the Henan-centered Chinese ceramic culture could be considered as one of the important cultural heritages nurtured by the Yellow River culture. Starting on August 2, we are launching the "Visit Henan, Explore China" series, featuring 6 short videos to help you catch a glimpse of wonderful Henan and brilliant Chinese civilization. Here is the fifth episode: A 1,000-Year-Old Ru Porcelain Vase Still Wows the World Today.
编者按：2022年7月8日，习近平总书记在给中国国家博物馆老专家的回信中强调，推动文物活化利用，推进文明交流互鉴，守护好、传承好、展示好中华文明优秀成果。作为文物大省的河南，不仅是中国品种最全的陶瓷产区，而且还是拥有古陶瓷窑址数量最多的省份，可以说以河南为中心的中国陶瓷文化是黄河文化孕育出的重要文化遗产之一。2022年8月2日起，大河网推出6期双语特别报道——“在河南，遇见China”。让我们一起，通过陶瓷文化，“豫”见中华文明。今日推出第5期：《消失近千年的汝瓷，何以惊艳世界》。
Click on the video above
NB: This is not a word-for-word transcript
In last episode, we learned the origin and development of Sancai. Today, let's explore the world of Ru porcelain.
在上一期报道中，我们一起学习了三彩瓷器的起源及其发展史。今天，让我们跟着镜头一起走进汝瓷的世界。
A screenshot from the video above
Song Dynasty (960-1279), a period of great prosperity of Chinese porcelain with kilns distributed nationwide, produced various outstanding porcelain, among which Ru, Guan, Ge, Jun and Ding were their representatives.
宋朝是中国瓷器空前发展的鼎盛时期，出现了百花齐放的局面，瓷窑遍及南北各地，品种繁多，以五大名窑（汝、官、哥、钧、定）为代表。
Jun porcelain. [Photo/dahe.cn]
With the growth in popularity during the Song Dynasty, Ru porcelain became most famous among the top 5 imperial porcelain varieties. Produced in Ruzhou city of Henan province, Ru porcelain occupies a prominent position in the history of Chinese ceramics. Rarely discovered, Guan porcelain was only offered for the imperial families in the late Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). Produced in Kaifeng city of Henan province, Guan porcelain was the only one in the history of Chinese ceramics that had not been circulated in the market. Ge porcelain, with crystal-like glaze, is featured by its grey-and-black mouth and iron-brown foot. However, the kilns of Ge porcelain has not been discovered yet. Jun porcelain, originated in Henan's Yuzhou city, is famous for its unique glaze transmutation and firing techniques. Ding porcelain is usually made with white glaze, delicate and jade-like.
汝瓷，盛名于北宋，位居宋代“五大名瓷”之首，因产于河南汝州而得名，在中国陶瓷史上占有显著地位。官瓷是是中国传统陶瓷中的稀世珍品，属于北宋末年宫廷官窑烧制的御用瓷器，产自河南开封，历来专供皇家享用，是中国历史上唯一没在市场上流通的瓷器。哥瓷釉色晶莹剔透，紫口铁足是其特色，但窑址至今未曾发现。钧瓷，因产于河南禹州而得名，以其独特的釉料及烧成方法产生的窑变神奇而闻名于世。定瓷以白釉为主，胎质坚密、细腻，釉色透明，柔润媲玉。
Goose-neck vase with sky-blue glaze and carved lotus pattern. [Photo/dahe.cn]
The picture above shows us a goose-neck vase with sky-blue glaze and carved lotus pattern produced in the Northern Song Dynasty and unearthed in 1987 in Qingliangsi village of Baofeng county, Pingdingshan city. Now, it is one of the top 9 greatest treasures of Henan Museum. With a wide mouth, slender neck, plump body, round foot and carved lotus pattern, the vase is covered in glossy blue glaze.
上图是一件烧制于北宋时期的汝官窑天蓝釉刻花鹅颈瓶，1987年出土于河南省宝丰清凉寺村，是河南博物院九大镇馆之宝之一。此瓶敞口细颈，鼓腹圈足，颈部及腹部剔刻折枝莲花纹，器表满施天蓝釉。
Ru porcelain. [Photo/dahe.cn]
Do you know that the imperial Ru kilns only ran for about 20 years in the late Northern Song Dynasty? Coupled with low finished product ratio, only a few Ru porcelain wares made by the imperial kilns have been discovered. Ru porcelain with sky-blue glaze is even rarer. So far, 4 pieces of such porcelain produced by the imperial kilns have been discovered and only 1 at the imperial kiln site, that is, the above-mentioned goose-neck vase with sky-blue glaze and carved lotus pattern collected by Henan Museum. Besides, among the 5 pieces of Ru porcelain with sky-blue glaze produced by the imperial kilns, the goose-neck vase at Henan Museum is the only one carved with flower pattern.
你知道吗？汝窑系御用窑，烧造时间极短，只在北宋晚期烧了大约20年。因此成品率极低，传世极少，天蓝汝瓷更加弥足珍贵。到目前为止，一共发现汝官窑传世天蓝釉器物4件，而在汝官窑遗址中实地发掘的天蓝釉作品，独此1件。在这5件存世的天蓝釉作品中，河南博物院收藏的这件汝官窑天蓝釉刻花鹅颈瓶，还是唯一一件刻花作品。
策划：王曦辉 张培君
文案：赵汉青
出镜：杨佳欣
制作：何蒙贺
审校：焦丹
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Visit Henan, Explore China Episode II: Primitive Porcelain, Not Primitive at All
Visit Henan, Explore China Episode III: China's Earliest White Porcelain Unearthed in Henan
Visit Henan, Explore China Episode IV: Sancai, a Mirror of Tang Dynasty
Editor：Zhao Hanqing