Épisodes

  • Episode 1: A story told from porcelain fragments

    Episode 1: A story told from porcelain fragments
    May 24 2020
    One day in June 2005, Chinese fishermen found several pieces of ancient porcelain while out working on their boat. What information was found from these porcelain fragments and why are they considered by experts to be "living fossils" that have recorded histories and stories?
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    8 min
  • Episode 2: Chinese porcelain: a history of thousands of years

    Episode 2: Chinese porcelain: a history of thousands of years
    May 25 2020
    Jingdezhen is known as China's porcelain capital because it has been producing Chinese ceramics for more than 1,000 years. How did the small town get its name and why is porcelain called 'china' across the world?
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    17 min
  • Episode 3: The story of blue and white porcelain

    Episode 3: The story of blue and white porcelain
    May 26 2020
    In Chinese pop singer Jay Chou's famous song "Blue and White Porcelain", he mistakenly suggests that the colors are a "light sky blue". In this episode, we find the truth about blue and white porcelain, as well as how it became a global obsession.
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    10 min
  • Episode 4: Kraak ware and its European influence

    Episode 4: Kraak ware and its European influence
    May 27 2020
    Kraak ware has been popular in Europe for hundreds of years. However, it was not made in Europe but in China. To find out why this chinaware has a fancy Western name and how it looks, let's travel back in time to the Netherlands in 1602.
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    9 min
  • Episode 5: Imari ware and a story lost in the mists of time

    Episode 5: Imari ware and a story lost in the mists of time
    May 28 2020
    Imari is a style of porcelain named after the Japanese port from which it was shipped to the West. At around the same period, the Chinese porcelain industry suddenly reached its peak and lost its glamorous appeal in the world market, replaced by this new Japanese porcelain.
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    8 min
  • Episode 6: The rise of European porcelain producers

    Episode 6: The rise of European porcelain producers
    May 29 2020
    Even though porcelain originated in China, only a few commercial brands were created there. Despite being 1,000 years behind, the European porcelain industry was soon developing its own porcelain brands. What happened?
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    10 min
  • Episode 7: The 72 processes of making porcelain

    Episode 7: The 72 processes of making porcelain
    May 30 2020
    Traditionally, there are 72 steps involved in the making of one Chinese porcelain piece. Other traditional crafts, like weaving, blacksmithing or carpentry, usually take place in a small workshop with simple procedures. Why does porcelain making require so many processes?
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    8 min
  • Episode 8: Challenges for Chinese porcelain

    Episode 8: Challenges for Chinese porcelain
    May 31 2020
    Despite China inventing porcelain and dominating worldwide production and trade for centuries, from the 19th century, due to the Western world's industrialization, the entire Chinese porcelain industry lagged far behind.
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    9 min