Xiaojinwu Kiln Site

Xiaojinwu Kiln Site

Xiaojinwu Kiln Site

Xiaojinwu Kiln Site The Xiaojinwu Kiln Site is situated on the slopes of Xiaojinwu Hill, about 0.5 kilometers south of the Niu’s Ridge Kiln Site, with a paddy field in front. It has not been cleared or excavated, nor has it suffered any human damage, so its current state of preservation is very good. Based on surface investigations, the site has a relatively extensive distribution area with thick layers of kiln waste. The exposed ceramic shards are largely similar in vessel forms and glaze colors to those found at the Niu’s Ridge Kiln Site, and the firing methods are identical. Therefore, the author speculates that it is an ancient porcelain kiln site dating back to the middle or late Tang Dynasty. Below is a brief description of the typical artifacts exposed on the surface:

Green-glazed bowl: with a flared lip, sloping body, obvious traces of inward turning on the inner wall, a flat base with a disc-shaped foot. The glaze is yellowish green, not covering the base. Stacked firing using spur marks.

Green-glazed plate: with a folded rim, shallow body, ring foot, grayish-green glaze, stacked firing using spur marks.

Green-glazed ewer: with a short spout, bulbous body, the spout positioned near the shoulder close to the neck, flat base, yellowish-green glaze, possibly used as a tea or wine vessel.

Among the remains of the three Tang Dynasty kiln sites in Lantian Village — Wan Yao Wu, Niu’s Ridge, and Xiaojinwu — numerous tea-drinking utensils and tea-processing tools have been discovered. Tea-drinking items include green-glazed ewers, green-glazed bowls, and green-glazed tea canisters, while tea-processing tools consist of grinding wheels and grinding troughs. These artifacts reflect the prosperity of the tea culture in the Jingdezhen area during the Tang Dynasty. According to the "New Book of Tang · Treatise on Food and Commodities," “Tea production varies by region, with Fuliang producing the most.” The "Yuanhe Maps and Records of Prefectures and Counties" by Li Jifu in the eighth year of the Yuanhe era (813 AD) further states: “Fuliang produces seven million loads of tea annually, yielding a tax of over 150,000 guan.” Jingdezhen was one of the major tea-producing and distributing centers in China during the Tang Dynasty. This shows that the artifacts unearthed from the Lantian Kiln align well with historical records. The flourishing tea industry promoted the vigorous development of ceramic tea ware production in Jingdezhen.

Lantian Village: Historically, Lantian Village has always been part of Xianghu Town, one of the “Four Historic Famous Streets” of Fuliang County. During the Tang Dynasty, the ancestors of Lantian built kilns against the mountains to produce green-glazed porcelain, while also engaging in thriving tea cultivation. In the Song Dynasty, the area around Lantian Village flourished with “kiln fires in every village and pottery-making in every household.” In the early Ming Dynasty, the Li family migrated here from Qimen County, Anhui, and established the settlement called Liji (Li Family). By the late Ming Dynasty, Liji Village had prospered significantly, with merchant ships frequently docking there, turning it into a bustling commercial port for goods distribution, hence renamed Lijibu (Li Family Port). Lijibu is now the location of the Lantian Village Committee. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, this area belonged to Xiayihé and Shangchangyuan under Shou’an Township, Fuliang County... More details about Lantian Village++