Yunnan Blue and white
Yunnan blue and white was first discovered in 1960 in an ancient kiln site at Yuxi (玉溪) wayao village according to the book History of Chinese pottery and porcelain. Since then, many blue and white wares, especially large jars were excavated from ancient cremation burial sites. Base on present archaeological research, the kiln sites are located in the following regions:
Yuxi and Jian shui (建水) are approximately 50 km apart (produced celadon, celadon with iron brown motif and blue and white. Blue and white wares, consisting of jar, vases, censers, bowls, and plates)
Dali (大理) (More extensive excavation were carried out in 1993 to 1995 in Fenyi shizi village ancient kiln site. Produced mainly celadon and blue and white wares, consisting bowls and plates and smaller quantity of jars/vases/figurines. Also some quantity of pottery consisting of bowls, plates, jars/ vases and figurines). [more details could be found in Zhongguo Gu Taoci Yanj Jiu volume 13 under the article by Mr Duan JinMing of Dali Museum]
Interestingly in this area, many large blue and white jars were recovered from the cremation burial sites．
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Most ceramics experts from Yunnan are of the view that porcelain production were first introduced during the late Song period . Celadon wares were first produced, followed by blue and white wares. They are of the view that Yunnan blue and white using local cobalt first appeared in late Yuan period. In fact, a term "Qing You Qing hua (青釉青花)", which literally means celadon glaze blue motif, was used to describe the the blue and white wares. This is because the glaze is visually of a light grayish green/yellow tone. Basically those from Yuxi, Jianshui and Lu Feng are of better quality and share common characteristics in terms of glaze/paste, shape, design and manufacturing techniques. As Yuxi was the first location to discover the blue and white wares of Yunnan, most people in the ceramics circle were used to term them as Yuxi blue and white.
The Yunnan potters started producing porcelain at least 1000 years later than those in other regions in China. It is speculated that two waves of migration of people from Central China to the Yunnan region resulted in the introduction of more advance agricultural and production (including porcelain) techniques. Yunnan is surrounded by mountainous terrains and remained a separate kingdom until it was conquered by the army of Kublai khan. The second wave was during the Ming Hongwu period when more than 500,000 people migrated to Yunnan mainly to cultivate the land. An evidence of possible potters among the migrants was a stone tablet erected to eulogize the virtues of rebuilding of the Ci en temple in Jianshui. The content mentioned a craftsman from Jingdezhen with the surname of che setting up a factory there. It is interesting to note that many of the Yunnan blue and white showed even more distinct influence of style of the Hongwu than Yuan period.
Yunnan Blue and white production ceased in late Ming. From mid Ming onward, Jingdezhen blue and white were produced in large quantity and imported to Yunnan. As they were of better quality and comparable price, they adversely affected the sale of the local counterpart and subsequently totally displaced them. Similar fate befallen the Annamese blue and whites which dominated the foreign market of Southeast Asia, South Asia, West Asia and middle east during the 15th century. During the early 15th century, the Vietnamese capitalised on the maritime prohibition policy of the Early Ming emperors and became the major producer to fill the vacuum for the supply of blue and white to overseas customers. The relationship between Annamese and Yunnan blue and white is another unresolved topic which is currently still debated. Stylistically, the motifs are even more similar as compared with those of Jingdezhen. Even the application of a brown slip on the base commonly found on Annamese wares is also sometime found on Yunnan celadon and blue and white. The Chinese experts are of the view that the Vietnamese potters copied the Yunnan blue and white decorations. One argument put forward was the comparison of the earliest blue and white found. The earliest dated piece of Annamese blue and white was a Yuan style motif and Ming shaped tianqiu vase (1450) in Topkapi museum. As for the Chinese source, at least two jars discovered in cremation burial sites were attributed to "9th year of Xuanguan" ie equivalent to 12th year of Ming Hongwu (1380) and "4th year of Xuande" ie 1429 respectively. The first date is more widely disputed as the burial site was badly disturbed. The second blue and white jar with floral/lion motif was found in a grave near another grave with the "4th year of xuande on the tomb stone". As the area was not disturbed, the dating was assumed to be reliable. Hence, it was deduced that the Yunnan potters started producing the blue and white earlier and logically influenced the Annamese counterpart. The western experts generally view it otherwise. In fact, the early Annamese blue and white copied the Yuan motif more faithfully and also used imported cobalt. Some of those pieces were even attributed a late Yuan dating. Whereas, so far the earliest Yunnan pieces, some big jars which are attributed to late Yuan showed characteristics of early Ming blue and white. Further, there is a possible evidence of an earlier example featuring sketchy flower on a blue and white bowl fragment found in Ryukyus was reported by John Guy. It could have found its way there as early as 1363 but not later than 1416. A similar one but with iron brown flower motif with a positive dating of 1330 was found in Japan. For overland travel between Yunnan and Vietnam, it is more easily accessible as compared with other regions of China. As Annamese potters used Yunnan cobalt on many of the blue and white wares, it is a clear evidence of contact. Some early Annamese pieces also used the middle east imported cobalt. As the starting date of production period of Yunnan and Annamese blue and white is very close, the issue of "who influence who" will remain unresolved until more concrete and datable evidence surface.
The motif on Yunnan blue and white are executed essentially using calligraphic strokes. The composition is an extension of the multi-layered decorative scheme typical of Yuan period. The motifs consisted of floral, phoenix, fish, lion and human motif. The vessels consisted of mainly bowls, plates, jars , vases and censers. Some blue and white pieces also featured additional decorative technique, such as incising on part of the blue and white motif and/or applique motif such as those of the 8 immortals.
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The number of big jars excavated from burial sites is numerous. They were mainly used as deposit for the cremated remains. Cremation was a common custom for the deceased but was prohibited during the Ming period. Hence, by the mid Ming the production of big jars was drastically reduced.
Yunnan blue and white, as compared with those from Jingdezehn, are comparatively more crude due to the constraints of the materials available for the production. The production was intended to meet the need of customers from the local region. Although the potters copied the decorative scheme from the Jingdezhen blue and white, stylistically the motifs had evolved and incorporated new elements. Indeed Yunnan blue and white is important in the study of the history of early blue and white as it was the only region besides Jingdezhen to produce this type of porcelain wares in late Yuan/early Ming Period.
Copyright : N K Koh (16 Feb 2008)
