Chinese Pottery and Porcelain: From Prehistory to the Present

The British Museum Press for the Trustees of the British Museum, 1991 Book. Good. Hardcover. 1st Edition. English text; Hardcover (cloth with dust jacket); 20 x 25.5 cm; 0.962 Kg; 240 pages with 100 colour illustrations ad 80 black-and-white illustrations; Used book in good condition, with signs of wear namely on the interior with minor pen marks (dots near parts of the text) and also signs of previous pencil highlighting; This book is a comprehensive, survey of the development of ceramics from the Neolithic period to the present day. Assessing the roles pottery has played in each dynasty throughout the history of China, the author also discusses its enormous impact on the ceramic industries of the rest of the world, where Chinese porcelain has been admired and collected for centuries. From the earliest earthenwares to the exotic burial figures of the Tang, from the classic forms and subtle glazes of the Song to the famous porcelains created especially for export or imperial tastes, the book draws upon the extensive collections of the British Museum for lavish illustrations. The author considers the purposes for which the ceramics of each period were made, how their production was organised, and what effect local conditions might have had on their final forms. Incorporating contemporary commentaries, recent archeological evidence from kiln sites and the most up-to-date scientific analysis, the book provides a valuable new account of China's ceramic history..