Liaoning Provincial Museum Ceramics (Part 4) | The Heartbeat of Kiln Fires in Twelve Dynasties

If you fold the history of Chinese ceramics in half, the crease would undoubtedly be in Liaoning. This place houses not just porcelain, but the beating hearts of twelve dynasties, from the Hongshan Civilization to the Qing Dynasty. 🏺【Three Shocking Aspects: Truths You Won't Find in Textbooks】 ▪️ Hongshan Culture Painted Pottery Goddess Statue: Not a container, but faith itself! A 4700-year-old pottery statue depicting a pregnant woman, with painted net-like patterns on its abdomen—the latest archaeological speculation suggests this is China's earliest "life totem." 3000 years earlier than the Venus of Greece, the Liaohe Civilization already worshipped female creativity. ▪️ Liao Dynasty Tricolor Glazed Capricorn Pot: Porcelain that swims! The dragon-headed, fish-bodied design originated from Buddhist scriptures, but was transformed by Khitan artisans into a grassland wine vessel. Most remarkably, the fins have holes for a rope, indicating it was once worn by nobles; the glaze flows with their movements, like a portable "miniature ocean." ▪️ Guangxu Period Famille Rose Autumn Military Exercise Cup: China's earliest "military-themed cultural and creative product"! Specially made for autumn military exercises, the cup features a depiction of the Beiyang Army's drills, and the handle is designed to resemble a rifle trigger. This was the last hurrah for ceramics, and also the empire's final struggle. 🔥【Decoding: Why is Liaoning a "pivotal" in the history of ceramics?】 】 • Raw Material Revolution: Kaolinite associated with Xiuyan jade mines creates the unique "Liaodong body" • Technological Transfer: Tang and Song dynasty potters migrated north, integrating nomadic aesthetics in the Liaodong region • Trade Gateway: The grassland Silk Road + Liaodong Corridor allowed porcelain to be sold far and wide to Goryeo and Japan, carrying the sound of horses' hooves. 📸【Must-See Scenes】 • Side lighting on the goddess pottery statue (highlighting the ancient maternal curves) • Close-up of the rope hole on the Sancai Capricorn pot (telling a thousand-year history of wearing) • Detail of the trigger handle on the Autumn Exercise Cup (a poignant footnote to the late Qing reforms) 💎【Smart Exhibition Route】 1. Head straight to the Prehistory Hall (see how ceramics evolved from practicality to worship) 2. Focus on the Liao-Jin Hall (a demonstration of the grassland transformation of Central Plains techniques) 3. A Closer Look at the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasty Hall (The Imprint of Global Trade on Porcelain) Standing before the goddess pottery statue, the most striking impression is felt: While other ancient civilizations sculpted deities from stone, The Hongshan people used the most fragile clay. Those once vibrant red paintings Now faded to the earth's color. This is not decline, It is faith sinking from form to essence—the soil that nurtured humanity, Should return to soil. And holding the Autumn Military Exercise Cup in hand, The cool porcelain surface evokes a tremor of history: When empires attempted to use the most fragile material, To bear the heaviest changes, The outcome was already written in the cracks of the kiln. 📍: Liaoning Provincial Museum, 3rd Floor, "A Thousand Years of Kiln Fire" Special Exhibition 🕘: 9:00-17:00 (Last entry at 16:30) 🎫: Free (Reservation required, bring ID card) 🚇: Liaoning Provincial Museum Station, Line 2, Exit C —————— From Faith to War From Altar to Battlefield The soil remembers this land All its glory and wounds As the kilns of twelve dynasties gradually died out Only porcelain silently guards the warmth and dreams of each generation