Celadon Upward-overlying and Downward-overlying Lotus Zun

3 min read

Celadon Upward-overlying and Downward-overlying Lotus Zun was produced in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, with grand style, novel design and unique design, which was the representative of celadon process in the north region. Lotus Zun was a new kind of craft modeling in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, which has high artistic value. This craftwork integrates heaping sculpture, collage, carvings and other techniques in one. The whole craftwork is plump and moist. Clay bone is grayish white and refined. Its body is applied with green grayish glaze, and accumulation place is dark green, with bright luster like crystal. Its ornamentation is rich and brilliant. The body is decorated with multilayer upward-overlying and downward-overlying lotus petals and rolling dragon. There are three layers of lotus petals in upper abdominal segment, which become longer layer upon layer. At the lowest layer, lotus petal is the longest. Petal cusp curls outwards. Petal leaf is decorated with drooping Bodhi leaf pattern. The lower section has two layers of upward-overlying lotus, which is plump and thick.

Lotus is also called as “lotus flower”, which is the most common symbol in Buddhist scriptures and Buddhist art. It can be said that “Lotus” is the symbol of “Buddha”. According to the legend, mother of Buddha Sakyamuni has a pair of beautiful eyes like lotus. After she is pregnant with the Buddha Sakyamuni, a flushed face is like a blooming lotus, and the bright green collar lace is like a lotus leaf. When the Buddha is born, a white lotus suddenly blooms in the marsh, which looks like a large wheel. When the Buddha is born, he stands on the lotus. His tongue radiates out thousands of golden rays, and each golden ray turns into a thousand-leaf white lotus. In each lotus, a cross-legged little Bodhisattva sits with upward sole center. After Buddha Sakyamuni practises enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, he walks around the tree so that his every step turns into a lotus flfl ower (a total of 18 flowers). Later, when Buddha Sakyamuni preaches, he sits on the lotus base, with sitting posture like lotus (so-called “Lotus Sitting Posture ” ) , namely, being crosslegged with upward sole center. Appearance of Lotus Zun and extensive use of lotus petal pattern reflfl ected the signififi cant effect of Buddhism on the celadon art of the Six Dynasties.

Arts and Crafts of the Three Kingdoms Period, the Eastern and the Western Jin Dynasties and the Northern and Southern Dynasties

In the Three Kingdoms Period, the Eastern and the Western Jin Dynasties and the Northern and Southern Dynasties, local separatist forces fought for a long time, especially frequent wars took place in northern region. A large population and industrial technology craftsmen continuously relocated southwards, and promoted the development in southern region. The center of arts and crafts production shifted from northern region to southern region. During these periods, arts and crafts mainly covered porcelain, textile, metal craft, lacquerware and murals. Among them, porcelain made outstanding achievements. Its production was widely prevalent, and technology reached a remarkable level. During these periods, Buddhism began to spread in China, and grotto construction began to sweep across China. As a result, arts and crafts also reflected strong religious tints.

Celadon

Celadon was the earliest porcelain in China, which got its name due to porcelain color. In the Bronze Age, raw glaze-colored porcelain appeared in China. In the Western Jin Dynasty, celadon firing technology basically matured. The earliest glazecolored porcelain was celadon. The porcelain-making clay soil is mostly high-quality kaolin clay, and glaze generally has calcium oxide ratio of more than 15%. When firing such kaolin clay, under the high temperature in the kiln, iron oxide triggers reduction reaction . The finished porcelain has high glazed degree, showing beautiful green color, which features bright rays and crisp sound.