Porcelain is a type of hard
pottery. It is white, but mildly transluscent and can be decorated to provide colour.
Chinese porcelain is made from a hard paste comprised of the clay
kaolin and a
feldspar called
petuntse, which cements the vessel and seals any pores.
China[?] is high-quality porcelain. Most china comes from the city of
Jingdezhen[?] (景德镇) in
China's Jiangxi (江西) province.
Jingdezhen, under a variety of names, has been central to porcelain production in China since at least the early
Han (汉) Dynasty. Earliest techniques were very primitive, barely above the level of mere pottery. By the time of the
Southern and Northern Dynasty (南北朝) period, however, techniques had been refined to the point that the clay in Jingdezhen made for what could be called porcelain.
The Sui (隋) and Tang (唐) Dynasties introduced high-temperature kilns, bringing with it the pure, translucent whites, attractive to the eye, as well as a variety of advanced glazing techniques resulting in smooth, durable porcelain. The resulting product was often referred to as "false jade".
The
Europeans used a soft paste, which makes for weaker porcelain than the Chinese method. To compensate, around
1750 the
English began to use
bone ash[?] to strengthen their porcelain.