Category: Chinese customs

Te-hua Porcelain 德化瓷

Located in the middle of Fujian province, Te-hua is a small county in the southwest of Quanzhou. The lush forest and fine quality porcelain clay make Te-hua porcelain（德化瓷：Déhuàcí） very famous. It is said that Te-hua porcelain began in Song dynasty, but it was found to be started in Shang and Zhou periods based on the new archeological findings. The most famous type of Te-hua porcelain is its ceramic white ware. The ceramic white ware is as white as polished jade, and its appearance is crystal. It has won the good reputation as “Chinese white”. Before Tang Dynasty, Te-hua porcelain was mainly for local people of everyday use. With the development of Port of Quanzhou during Song and Yuan Dynasties, Te-hua porcelain started to be sold to the countries along the famous “Maritime Silk Road”. As one of the largest exporting kilns in South China, Te-hua porcelain had a large significance in cultural interaction between ancient China and other countries. Te-hua porcelain has been listed among the first batch of national nonmaterial cultural heritage in 2006 by State Council.

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Expert：Shennongjia Savage does not exist

Does the Shennongjia Savage really exist? Paleoanthropologist Zhou Guoxing pointed out during the Science and Technology Journalist Salon hosted by the Beijing Municipal Association of Science and Technology and other organizations that the Shennongjia Savage does not exist based on his long-term fieldwork experience in the Shennongjia region and other regions.

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Lacquer ware that ‘maddens the cat’ – Fuzhou bodiless lacquer ware 福州脱胎漆器

As shown in the picture, “The Goldfish Bowl” is a big basin painted in green on the outer surface, and eight red-and-white goldfishes are painted swimming within, vivid and lifelike. By taking the method of gold drawing, the fish scale has a striking resemblance to the real one. When you pour some water into the bowl, the goldfishes seem to come to life. It is said that the goldfishes look so real that even the cat mistakes them for real ones, and all its effort to catch them in vain that it truly gets pissed off. Therefore, the work is also called “qisi mao” (literally, maddening the cat). This piece of work is Fuzhou bodiless lacquer ware. “The Goldfish Bowl” makes full use of the translucent characteristic of the lacquer, and after fish sketching, drawing gold, drawing silver, painting and polishing processes, the scene of a group of goldfish swimming in the water comes to life, with its own distinctive feature. Moreover, the Chinese character “鱼” (fish) is homophonic with “余” (surplus), so it is a symbol of auspiciousness.

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Xinglongwa Culture

Xinglongwa Culture is a culture of the early stages of the Neolithic Age in Inner Mongolia with a wide coverage that stretches to Xunhe in the west, Yiwulu Mount in the east, Wuerjimulun River in the north and the northern coast of Bohai Sea in the south.

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