A blue-and-white incenser burner with dragon decorations from reign of Wanli (1573-1620). [Photo provided to China Daily]

Unlike the fire-breathing, treasure-guarding winged monsters of ancient European imagination, Chinese dragons, or long, are creatures that represent power and prosperity.

Consequently, dynasty after dynasty, the dragon was a symbol of the emperors.

In recent decades, archaeologists have unearthed a myriad of porcelain shards in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, which is known as "China's ceramic capital".

Reassembling the fragments with long patterns not only revealed state-of-the-art craftsmanship but also put together a puzzle that reveals different facets of imperial China.