Hand Painted Military Holding with Tangled Branches and Peonies in Imitation of Yongle Blue and White

THE HISTORY OF BLUE AND WHITE PORCELAIN
• Blue and white porcelain began to be made in large amounts in Jingdezhen starting in the Ming(1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties,gradually becoming the most recognizable ceramic style in both the East and West.
• This blue and white vase can tell you a lot about China's international history.
• The story begins with the mineral known as cobalt,which the Persians used to make a unique pigment which turned blue when heated.
• In the 13th century when the Yuan Dynasty took over China, Islamic culture penetrated into Chinese territory.
• Blue was a favorite color of Muslims as it symbolized water-"the treasure of the desert".
Chinese masters worked the imported blue powder into floral scrolls on the stark white porcelain, so the style came to be known as Qinghua, which literally means blue flowers.
• Later in the Ming and Qing dynasties, Qinghua was made in large amounts in Jingdezhen and became the most recognizable style in both East and West.
• Vessels exported from China could be found all around the world, from national museums to private collections.
• Many cultures around the world have had their symbols etched in Chinese blue and white.

THE HISTORY OF JINGDEZHEN
Jingdezhen, a world-famous porcelain town in Jiangxi. In Chinese, the name Jingdezhen is virtually synonymous with ceramics,particularly porcelain.
• Historical records tell of Jingdezhen (then called Xinping) making porcelain in the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD), while archaeological excavations have shown evidence of Jingdezhen firing porcelain in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (265-420).
• Jingdezhen Porcelain developed rapidly in the Song and Yuan dynasties (960-1368), and a series of imperial factories was set up in Zhushan (a district of Jingdezhen) during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1912), making Jingdezhen the nation's porcelain center.
• Jingdezhen porcelain is characterized by its beautiful shapes, various varieties, rich decorations,and unique styles. It is quite famous for its white porcelain, which is known for being 'white as jade,bright as a mirror, thin as paper, and sounding like a rock'.
• Regarding Chinese porcelain's glaze, blue was traditionally taken as the most precious color.
• During the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127),Jingdezhen kilns imitated the tone and moist texture of blue and white jade, and creatively fired a kind of qingbai ware ('blue-white' ware).
• The production of blue-white ware made Jingdezhen Porcelain particular important and famous at home and abroad.

OUR CRAFTSMAN
• We have many Chinese masters of arts and crafts, Jiangxi masters of arts and crafts, as well as national first-class technicians and professional cooperation teams.
• These craftsmen have been employed for more than 20 or 30 years and were born in Jingdezhen's porcelain family.
• Their craftsmanship has also been passed down from generation to generation. We hope that through the efforts of the company and the craftsmen, the Chinese traditional ceramic culture as well as technology and aesthetics can be truly integrated into modern life, so that more people can feel, touch and use these artifacts.
• This is more like a dialogue with the ancients and the modern people.

• Porcelain transformed from the soil of nature
• It was once called "white gold" in western European countries
• Blue and white porcelain is the first global commodity
• The Ming Dynasty was at the beginning of global trade
• Witness the prosperity of porcelain trade between China and the West in the 17th century

Caliber: 6.5cm
Bottom diameter: 8.0cm
Belly diameter: 11.5cm
Height: 22.0cm
Process: blue and white

The army holds a curly mouth, a round lip, a thin neck, a drooping belly, and a pedestal under the belly. The main part of the upper part is the style of the spring vase. The inside of the foot is stepped with two rings of astringent rings inside and outside. It is the part where the gasket is used for firing in the kiln. There is a long stream on the ventral side, without handle. Full body blue and white peony pattern.
The military holds a variety of styles. The military holding of this shape was also fired during the Xuande period of the Jingdezhen official kiln in the Yongle period. The varieties include blue and white glaze, etc. The Yongle ware is not marked with the model year, and the Xuande ware is marked with the model year.

The original purpose of military holding should be to drink water or clean hands during the worship of Islam. The Qing Dynasty palace painting "The Painting of Emperor Qianlong's Ancient Records" in the Palace Museum shows a young boy holding an army and pouring tea into the Emperor Qianlong's cup.