Virtually every exported cup, plate or vase began its life in Gaolin Mountain, which lies in China’s porcelain capital, Jingdezhen, in Jiangxi province. The Kaolin clay from the mountain, also called china clay, is infused with another mineral substance, mica, which makes it harder when formed into porcelain.
According to Low, in the past there were two kinds of kilns — imperial (guan yao 官窑) and civil (min yao 民窑). “Imperial kilns only produced china for the emperor with the best craftsmen and the best china clay. Once the chinaware had a tiny flaw, it was destroyed,” he says.
Fine exported porcelain was all made in the civil kilns in Jingdezhen. “But they are of better quality than others afterward since the exported ceramics were made for celebrities and the rich in Europe, and they had higher standards,” he says.
Trading companies sprouted in European countries and demanded a slice of the newly discovered treasure. Porcelain was more than dinnerware or cups, but compelling Chinese works of art that lured the world.
One of the trading ships designed for trade with the Orient, the Götheborg, built by The East India Company, sank off the Swedish coast in 1745 after returning from its third voyage to China. All the goods on what was then the largest operational wooden vessel in the world were from China, including tea, silk and Chinese ceramics. It was said that all the commodities aboard were worth an amount approaching one year’s GDP in Sweden at the time.
Only 8 percent of the goods were salvaged, mainly Chinese ceramics, but with that the investors recovered their costs and actually made a small profit.
Another factor driving the market for exported porcelain is that, while expensive, good values still can be found.
“I like the exported ceramics in European countries because there you will find more variety, usually at auction houses in the United Kingdom and in the Netherlands,” Low says. “In China, people give too much attention to porcelain from imperial kilns, but the price is outrageous, at least 500,000 yuan. But I think there still a lot potential for exported ceramics.”
The differences in the exported porcelains also attract buyers. Chinese people did not use porcelain vessels with handles like Westerners, sticking to the traditional cups with no handles. As a result, exported, Western-style chinaware of that period is extremely rare in China.
“Except for shapes and style, normally exported ceramics have more intricate patterns and figures that depict the daily life in China. Also, only in Chinese exported porcelain can you see golden designs around the edge of chinaware. In China you won’t find any gold elements on ceramic pieces,” Low says.
Some of the exports are completely covered with a golden glaze, which required special skills. Except for china with overglazed colors — those enameled twice — Low says he prefers blue-and-white porcelain. “It is more simple and elegant,” he says.
Low has collected about 200 exported porcelains, among which he adores those depicting figures and stories. A court lady in a high-collared qipao dress on a terrace or romantic love stories are very popular motifs.
“When you hold a small cup in your hand and slowly turn it around, it’s like reading a story. The picture is so detailed that you can see the folds in the clothes,” Low says.
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