Archeologists have documented some of the earliest Neolithic Chinese cultures near the Yellow and Yangtze rivers. The Neolithic period began around 10,000 B.C in China and ended about 8,000 years later with the introduction of metallurgy. The painted pottery of the region is among the most beautiful artifacts that show the creativity of the Neolithic inhabitants of China. The dazzling array of designs and shapes indicate a concern for functionality among the early ceramicists of the region. Recent discoveries have led to new debates on the significance of the designs that appear on the Chinese Neolithic painted pottery. The period was characterized by farming and domesticating animals along the main river systems.
Exhibition proposal The Chinese pottery from the Neolithic culture discovered in this paper comes from two regions in prehistoric China, the upper northwest region and the eastern coast of the river. The pottery from the northwest region belongs to the Neolithic culture is characterized by painting done in black and red pigment and carries whirls and spirals. Three artifacts have been chosen from the Neolithic Chinese pottery to show the greater diversity found in artifacts as well as the level of skills displayed by the potters of that era. Jar with two handles belongs to Yangshao culture Tripod vessel (gui) is from the Dawenkou culture while Jar (guan) is fromMajiayao culture. The concept behind the exhibition is to establish a better understanding among the masses about the ceramic and pottery community of the Chinese Neolithic era. The exhibition focuses on the pottery found in the eastern coast and sheds light on the different cultures that developed along the Yellow and Yangtze River valleys overlapped and influenced each other. The exhibition is sure to attract local and international ceramic artists to the unique pottery and the ancient art in China. Although the ancient art in China was largely more functional, the artists paid much attention to ornamentation and decoration. Pottery was used for functional and ceremonial purposes and was characterized by a broad range of colored, decorated and polished vessels. The exhibition will operate as an exchange platform between artists and museums who are passionate about ancient pottery. They will get an insight on the working techniques and material used by the ancient Chinese Neolithic potters. The goal behind is to make Neolithic China more visible and show the important juncture and overlapping of Neolithic pottery traditions in China.
The exhibit includes the three artifacts from Neolithic China from different cultures, namely, Jar with two handles from Yangshao culture, Tripod vessel (gui) from Dawenkou culture and Jar (guan) from Majiayao culture. The three artifacts are not only outstanding but a staking pieces of work from Neolithic China period.
Jar with two handles - Yangshao culture - Neolithic period The Early Yangshao agriculturists lived in permanent villages located in the Yellow River Valley. The Yangshao archeological culture is famous for its painted pottery and stretched across the Yellow River and Wei River regions, till the northwestern plains. Yangshao culture is distributed into two main stages, Banpo and Miaodigou. The earthenware vessels carried painted designs and the paint was made with a mixture of clay and mineral pigments. Those designs and patterns showed more smooth and fluid contours with tapered endings which indicate the use of a brush. The vessels were smoothed before firing and were used in daily life. Jar with two handles belongs to the Banpo phase of Yangshao culture, which is famous for its painted pottery. The ancient jar was used for holding wine, oil or water and is referred to as amphora. The hemp-cord marked conical amphora looks graceful with talk neck and appointed bottom plus a straight lip and two handles. Like most Yangshao Neolithic pottery, the jar was first coil built before getting smoothed and paddled. The two looped handles are fitted on either side for easy carrying. The flowing horizontal patterns seen on this amphora are similar to those found in early Majiayao culture that shows an overplaying of Yangshao Banpo culture and the Majiayao cultural development. Thus, the Jar with two handles can be seen as the coming together of the two cultures and a pivotal point between the two. The cord marked vessel is an unpainted amphora that carries a rough surface. Its character carries more resemblance to the tradition followed in the central Yangshao culture. The slightly constricted neck of the jar expands to a full body in the middle and then tapers off to a pointed base. Chinese historians often refer to this kind of vessel as a canteen. The vessel, when placed in water, would tip over until it got filled and became straight again, because of the position of its center of gravity. The shape and use of the vessel show the sophisticated understanding of the mechanics by the potters of that era. Clearly, the vessel was used for filling and storing water. The extraordinarily lines used as incised decoration require higher skills and lots of patience.
Tripod vessel (gui)– Dawenkou culture- Neolithic period The complex society of China is known for its several features such as jade carving, elaborate rituals and use of food and drinking vessels in their rituals. Dawenkou culture derives its name because of the proximity of the archeological site near Dawenkouzhen in Shandong province. Dawenkouzhen town lies along the eastern coast of China in the lower Yellow River valley region. A large number of tombs have been excavated at Dawenkou sites, and different artifacts such as ceramic vessels, jade ornaments, stone tools, human teeth, dog sacrifices, and pig skulls have been found in the tomb. The ceramics found in this period are burnished and carry a smooth finish. They are carved, stamped and decorated with paint. Some of them bear applique designs. The thin-walled white ware made its appearance around the Middle of the Dawenkou archeological culture. The peculiar type of pouring vessel, also referred to as gui, made its appearance before 3000 B.C. In the Early Dawenkou period, the gui vessels carried solid legs, and the handle was fixed to the base of the neck. However, during the Late Dawenkou period, the legs became shorter and hollow and were attached to a rounder body. The handle was joined higher on the neck. The Tripod vessel or ewer is handmade and carries a peculiar shape and looks like a grouping of individual parts. The rounded earthenware carries a thin band of pie-crust. The vessel is supported by three legs that are hollow, bulbous on the start and taper to pointed feet. The neck of the vessel is tall and flared and has been pinched out to take the shape of a long pointed spout. Painted red pigment covers the base of the neck. A rope-twist handle is fitted between the neck and the body on the opposite side to the spout. The vessel carries a rough look. Carefully washed fine clays have been used for particular vessels, especially the delicate ritual wares. The white ware was fired at temperatures of about 900 C to produce a fine-grained, light-colored pottery because of the high kaolin clay content. The light colored pottery carried different lighter tones from yellow, to pink. However, the white ware pottery was reserved for ritual vessels and was not used as regular daily wares. Jar (guan) – Majiayao culture- Neolithic period Majiayao culture sites are distributed westward along the Wei River to Lanzhou and the upper reach of the Yellow River. Majiayao pottery typically carries a red-buff earthenware body with a smoothed surface and decorated with black paint. The pottery varies greatly in shape and often carries complicated spiral designs. There are bowls, jars with tall necks and other pottery in varied shapes and designs. The large pots and urns carried black and maroon-red paint on their shoulders, and it is the use of black and maroon colors that marks the difference between Banshan and Majiayao painted pottery. Majiayao Culture I has been divided by the archeologists into the Majiayao, Banshan, and Machang types based on the typological studies of pottery. It is characterized by devoting much time and significant energy for making painted pottery vessels. The archeological culture was a well‐developed millet‐based agricultural community with intensive painted pottery. The jars or guans unearthed from different sites were primarily meant for storage. The Jar from Majiayao culture discussed in this essay belongs to Banshan phase. The two-handled jar is one of the most frequent shape produced in the Machang phase of the Majiayao culture. The decorative motif and pattern on the jar is geometric and includes curvilinear patterns. Built of fine clay, the storage jar is almost as wide as it is tall. It rests on a narrow base with the body swelling in the middle and constricting to a high neck with a flared lip. The two handles are fixed on either side of the jar at the center. The use of red and black pigment in combination began in Banshan phase and was further explored in the later Machang phase. The decoration on the jar is done with clear precision. The use of geometric and linear patterns on the reddish-brown earthenware in black and red gives it a distinct character. The neck is painted with a border of black triangles, and the upper body carries circular outlines in red. The complex design structures illustrate the artisan’s brilliant craftsmanship. The dense design is divided into several panels that cover the body of the jar and leave the small portion below intact. The red and black pigment make a sharp contrast to the design pattern with uniform width. The sophisticated design, vivid pigment, and fluent brushwork demonstrate the high-quality of painted pottery vessels from Majiayao culture. The overall pattern is found commonly on other artifacts discovered from the Banshan phase and is referred to as the gourd pattern. The intricate patterns fill the body of the jar and is filled with crosshatching marks. The iron-rich pigments have been sued with a precise expertise. Such vessels point to the skills of early Chinese potters in controlling the temperature of their kilns and their designing. The pottery and its design show the complex pottery and artistic tradition of the Neolithic China.Working with Clay The archeological research has always focused on ceramic production and works with clay. They study the characteristics of vessels and specialized production for household industry and workshop industry. Ceramic production depends on the social relations between producers and consumers, the labor and resources used and the quantities of vessels made. The increase in diversity in shapes and sizes of vessels produced over time are indicative of a change in needs as well as the mode of production. The art of ceramics and pottery-making has advanced significantly over the years. Enormous changes have occurred in the past decades. The word Clay appeared in Old English for the first time and meant to glue and paste to stick together. The kiln was derived from the Latin word culinary and was introduced by the Romans to England, and showed up as a large oven. It was Marco Polo who first introduced Chinese porcelain to Europe, and it became porcelain in Italy and porcelain to French. Before working with clay, one has to understand what clay is and its properties. There are different kinds of clay, various techniques and how it is fired. The possibilities are limitless when one is working with clay. Clay is found in form or the other in almost every part of the world. Formed naturally, it gets washed down mountains and gets deposited in rivers, streams and lakes below. Along the way, it gets combined with different organics and minerals, and thus develops unique characteristics. Aluminum silicate mineral kaolinite is stated to be the purest state clay.
Looking back at historic civilizations, the Potters went to the riverbeds to collect clay for their craft and make pots. Today, the process of working with clay has become a lot more advanced and refined. The raw materials are first mixed with water by the Clay manufacturers and given different shapes before firing the dried clay to temperatures between 1800°F and 2300°. The process turns clay into ceramic which is more durable, and permanent. Clay can be bought commercially as stoneware, earthenware and porcelain and these different categories are based on the maturity temperature and color. This is because the various clay bodies “mature” at different temperatures. It is essential to know the vitreous nature of the clay body and how susceptible the clay is to freezing. Clay firing temperatures range from low, mid and high fire. The malleability of clay refers as to how simple it is to shape and work with The color of clay depends on what material it is made of and what pigments are in it. Clay with manganese will be blackish in color while clay with much iron it will be reddish. Porcelain is formed when the clay that is fired and the clay turns to a vitreous and sturdy ceramic. Because of the higher kaolin content, Porcelain is usually pure white. However as porcelain is deficient in some of the other additives, it not the most malleable of clay. Stoneware is a coarse clay body that is gray or brown, because of the presence of iron and other impurities in varying levels. Earthenware is low firing fine clay body and may be brown, orange, or red because of the presence of Iron and other impurities. In conclusion, there was certainly some social significance attached to those artifacts from Neolithic Chinese pottery vessels. They were used for identity, to display prestige and used for different rituals. Intensive ceramic production and painted pottery vessels were driven by demand and social needs of the Neolithic communities. With the agricultural productivity of the farming community on the rise, there was a growing need to store food and grains. The increasing demand for design and quality promoted production efficiency. Each culture under Neolithic Chinese era was able to make relatively high-quality vessels that met the requirements of both internal and external consumers. These craft goods and pottery were marketable objects and commodities as well as with complicated social and economic interaction. The beautiful artifacts document the creativity of the Neolithic inhabitants of China. Through them, one gets a glimpse of how, the Chinese civilization developed through the interaction of diverse cultures over the years. The artifacts demonstrate the ideas of the Neolithic cultures flourishing during the 5000-3000B.C. The wide range of designs and shapes in the painted pottery of the region indicates a concern for aesthetics as well as functionality by those early ceramicists who made these wares. Pottery containers were made by heaping coils of clay and painted with red and black pigments with the help of a brush. The gray and black pottery of eastern is noted for its characteristic shapes. It is interesting to see how the potters used the techniques of incising and burnishing. The published data points out that the complex household industry characterizes more than individual workshop industry, and the production was held in limited areas at sites. This is indicative of specialization in the pottery production rather than household production. By studying the shapes of the pottery, the colors and designs and the process of making them, one gets a useful insight on the tradition and culture of the Chinese Neolithic period. The artifacts shed light on these cultures, traditions followed and the artistic styles overlapped and influenced each other. The historic clay pots focus exploration of earthenware and porcelain and help understand Neolithic Chinese pottery. They provide a good exhibition of life and culture in Neolithic China. Ceramic art work displays the creative activity of the Chinese Neolithic society with those utilitarian earthenware fired in bonfires. The above practices show a fundamental artistic interest in Chinese history as well as offer an insight in the rituals and tradition of those cultures. An exhibition of these three artifacts would carry great social and aesthetic significance. They provide information on the complex social structure that evolved among the Neolithic settlers in South China.
