Song Dynasty Miniature Pottery Jarlet

Southern Song dynasty, 1127-1275AD, China.

Superb Southern Song dynasty miniature pottery jarlet. The ceramic art of the Song Dynasty has historically been divided into two distinct periods of manufacture, the Northern Song (960-1127) and the Southern Song (1127-1275). The Song court favored elegant ceramics with simple and refined forms and subtle gazes, reflecting the aesthetic values and introspective atmosphere of the time. 

In the Song dynasty, there were six prominent ‘kiln groups’: Ding, Jun, Yaozhou, Cizhou in Northern China and Longquan and Jingdezhen in the South. Each kiln group consisted of several kilns. The five most well-known kilns during the Song dynasty were the Guan, Ge, Ding, Jun and Ru kilns. As to glaze, colour and form, each of them had their specialty. The wares of the Song Dynasty were primarily stoneware, except for the porcelaneous Ding and Qingbai wares. The former were produced in Jiancicun in Quyang County, Hebei province and the latter at a number of locations in Jiangxi province including Jingdezhen, where porcelain production was to be later centred. According to the colour of the glaze, monochrome stoneware and porcelain is usually categorized into green, white, black and greenish-white colour. The colour of the glaze is mainly determined by the iron amount in the glaze. The decoration on Song ceramics is modest and simple, if compared with later dynasties. Decorative patterns were mainly done by engraving, incising, stamping and impressing. In the early Song period engraving was the most common decoration technique and used in all kilns. 

Delicate miniature jarlet with sloping shoulders, tapering sides and narrow neck are probably from a kiln in Jizhou in Jiangxi province, and Southern Song dynasty period. Absolutely gorgeous brownish black glaze covers the jarlet. Interior are unglazed. Good condition. Age-related wear. Intact. Minimal discolouring and abrasion. Size approx. 5,8cm x 4,6cm x 4,6cm. 

Provenance: Danish private collection

References and further reading:

Song to Yuan dynasties 960–1350, National Palace Museum, Taipei.(https://www.npm.edu.tw/exh99/ceramics/en/page-3.html#main)

The Enchantment of Song, Ying Jang & Annika Waenerberg, 2002, Academia.(https://www.academia.edu/10582197/The_Enchantment_of_Song)