Minneapolis Institute of Art

Small Dish

China

Date

9th century

Medium

Xing ware Porcelaneous stoneware with clear glaze

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

White stoneware with a glazed surface made its appearance in the northern dynasties (420-589). The production of high-fired white stoneware was a major achievement; it broke away from the stereotypical celadon preceding it, helped create the taste for fine porcelain, and set the stage for overglaze painted stoneware. In the Sui Tang period (6th-7th centuries), white stoneware achieved renown in north China where it was originally produced. The earliest kilns to perfect white porcelaneous stoneware were the Xing kilns in Hebei province. By mid-to-late Tang (8th-9th century), their wares were considered the best of their time with extremely durable, high-fired (1320° c), pure white bodies of simple form, no slip, and perfectly clear lustrous glazes. Other kilns were quick to imitate them, but the different local clays made exact imitation impossible. Asia

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