the
art of making of ceramics originated in china some 6,000 years
ago. porcelain, including an early form of celadon, began to emerge
during the shang dynasty in china (16th to 11th century bc). this
type of ceramic reached its highest state of perfection and became
famous in the ming dynasty (14th to 17th century ad).
its
chinese name, “qingci”, means greenish porcelain. research reveals
many different and colourful explanations for its western name,
“celadon”. one explanation is that the name celadon is derived
from two sanskrit words: ‘sila', which means stone, and ‘dhara',
which means green. another is that celadon is named after the
young hero of a french romance (written in 1610) who was renowned
for wearing the distinctive blue-green colour. it was just about
this time that the chinese qingci made its successful debut in
paris and this colour became all the rage. however, “an illustrated
dictionary of ceramics” by harold newman and george savage offers
the explanation that “the name is probably a corruption of salah-ed-din
(saladin), sultan of egypt, who sent forty pieces of this ware
to nur-ed-din, sultan of damascus, in 1171."
in
any event, celadon has come to mean the green, blue and grey coloured
paste glazes used in the production of this type of porcelain.
the beauty of the distinctive celadon colours depends mainly on
the glaze. the celadon glaze is made from a mixture of several
natural materials which are fired in a gas kiln at 1280 °C for
between 10 and 11 hours. the characteristic cracks are caused
by the contraction between the body of the celadon product and
the glaze when the product is cooled. its crackle and colour creates
its unique beauty and value.
the
products are free from toxic materials such as lead and cadmium,
and can safely be used in the microwave and dishwasher. due to
their durability and strength, no special care instructions are
required for celadon or glass crackle products.
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