Ru Guan Kiln Site at Qingliang Temple

Qingliang Temple Ru Guan Kiln Site

The Qingliang Temple Ru Guan Kiln Site is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Qingliang Temple Ru porcelain kiln site is located in the village of Qingliang Temple and on the earthen terraces along the stream to the south of the village, in Daying Town, Baofeng County, Henan Province. Situated at the eastern foothills of the Funiu Mountains, the area is surrounded by mountains on all sides. The terrain where the kiln site lies is flat, with small streams winding around the west and south. There is an abundance of raw materials for porcelain production nearby, including coal, kaolin, and agate, making it a resource-rich site for ceramic manufacturing. The site covers an area of 150,000 square meters.

In 1987, trial excavations conducted by the Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics uncovered important features such as workshops, kilns, drainage ditches, ash pits, wells, and clay settling ponds. Typical Ru Guan kiln artifacts and a large number of porcelain shards were unearthed. As a result, the Provincial Bureau of Cultural Relics issued the "Opinions on Strengthening the Protection of the Qingliang Temple Ru Kiln Site in Baofeng County" in the same year, instructing that the site be protected as a provincial-level cultural relic. Subsequently, five more excavations were carried out at the site. Based on the extensive remains and artifacts unearthed, it was confirmed that this site was the Ru Guan kiln where imperial porcelain was produced for the Northern Song court. The Ru kiln is one of China’s Five Great Kilns. It is known for its delicate craftsmanship, sturdy and dense body, thick and clear glaze layers that are smooth and lustrous, and holds a highly significant position in the history of Chinese ceramics. Due to the extremely limited number of surviving pieces, they are priceless and have fetched astronomical prices in international markets. The discovery of the Ru Guan kiln not only opened up broad prospects for Ru porcelain research but also solved a mystery that had puzzled archaeologists for half a century—the search for the Ru Guan kiln site. It was announced as a Henan Provincial Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit in 2000, a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit in 2001, and was listed among the Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries in China in 2000. It was also ranked among the Ten Major Archaeological Discoveries of the 20th Century in Henan Province in 2000.

The Qingliang Temple Ru Guan Kiln Site is divided into four areas (designated by Roman numerals). The southern terrace of Qingliang Temple Village is Area I, Han Village is Area II, the west side of Xiaoshiqiao is Area III, and Qingliang Temple Village is Area IV. The central production area for sky-blue glazed ware is located in the northwest of Area IV. Between 1987 and 2001, seven rounds of trial and full-scale excavations revealed that the site has a very rich cultural content. Surface-level kiln tools and porcelain shards are found everywhere. The stratigraphy of the folk kiln area generally reaches about 2–3 meters in depth, with the thickest parts exceeding 6 meters. The stratigraphy of the official kiln area ranges from 0.25 to 1.2 meters, with the thickest part nearly 2 meters. Excavated features and artifacts: In the folk kiln area, main features include kilns, storage pits, workshops, ash pits, drainage ditches, and wells. Major artifacts include bowls, plates, dishes, cup stands, cups, lids, tri-colored pillows, stoves, saggers, spur marks, molds, etc. Also unearthed were imperial Ru porcelain items such as goose-neck bottles, folded-shoulder bottles, slender-neck small-mouth bottles, and basins. Product types include white-glazed, bean-green-glazed, and light-gray-glazed wares, black-glazed and soy-sauce-glazed wares, Jun porcelain, and tri-colored pottery. In the official kiln area, main features include workshops, filtration pools, clay settling ponds, kilns, ash pits, wells, and drainage ditches. Main artifacts fall into three categories: porcelain, molds, and kiln tools, along with a small number of coins. According to incomplete statistics, 99% of the unearthed porcelain is sky-blue-glazed Ru ware. Types of vessels include bowls, plates, dishes, cups, cup stands, lids, bowls, basins, boxes, bottles, stoves, and teapots. Glaze colors are mainly sky blue, light sky blue, and moon white, with a certain proportion of greenish-blue and light greenish-blue glazes. Most molds are wheel-made, with carved patterns or composite designs for complex motifs. They are divided into two types: Type A, all wheel-made; Type B, outer mold of a lotus-flower stove. Kiln tools unearthed include saggers, support stands, test-firing plugs, pads, and rings. Coins mainly consist of “Yuanfeng Tongbao” and “Yuanyou Tongbao.” The cultural layer is generally 2–3 meters deep, with the thickest part reaching 6 meters, and can be divided into seven strata.

Based on the stratigraphic sequence and the development and changes in artifact types, body material, glaze color, and decorative techniques, the site can be divided into five phases:

Phase I: Represented by Strata VI and VII. Among the unearthed porcelain shards, white-glazed pieces make up the vast majority, followed by bean-green-glazed and light-gray-glazed wares, with a small number of black-glazed and soy-sauce-glazed items. Representative artifacts include: bean-green-glazed flared-rim printed small bowls, bean-green-glazed open bowls, bean-green-glazed lip-rim cups, light-gray-glazed white-rimmed bowls, white-glazed outward-splayed flat-bodied bowls, white-glazed ribbed jars with wide mouths, white-glazed straight-bodied ribbed ewers, white-glazed open shallow-dish plates, black-glazed small bottles with white-glazed bodies and necks, and soy-sauce-glazed double-handled globular jars. This phase dates back to the early Northern Song Dynasty, during the reigns of Emperor Taizu to Emperor Zhenzong.

Phase II: Represented by Stratum V. White-glazed ware dominates, with a notable increase in green-glazed items, fewer black-glazed pieces, and a decline in light-gray-glazed wares. Representative artifacts include: bean-green-glazed peony-pattern printed bowls, bean-green-glazed carved lotus-pattern small bowls, bean-green-glazed grouped chrysanthemum-pattern printed small bowls, bean-green-glazed floral-rim cups, bean-green-glazed round-handle lids, white-glazed pearl-pattern carved peony-pattern pillows, white-glazed straight-mouthed double-handled ribbed jars, white-glazed slanted-rimmed lamp bases, and white-glazed open slanted-body bowls. This phase dates to the middle Northern Song Dynasty, during the reigns of Emperors Renzong, Yingzong, and Shenzong.

Phase III: Represented by Strata III and IV. The quantity of green-glazed wares surges, almost equaling white-glazed items, followed by tri-colored glazes, with fewer black-glazed and no light-gray-glazed wares. Representative artifacts include: bean-green-glazed bowls with inner prints and outer carvings, bean-green-glazed printed dragon-pattern plates, bean-green-glazed six-line raised-pattern bowls, bean-green-glazed carved peony plates, bean-green-glazed elephant-trunk-knob carved lids, bean-green-glazed interlocking-peony small plates, white-glazed sunflower-rim deep plates, white-glazed open curved-body bowls, white-glazed double-handled ribbed jars, white-glazed flared-mouth long-body ewers, tri-colored molded lotus-petal deep stoves, tri-colored carved lotus-leaf-shaped pillows, black-glazed bamboo-leaf-pattern soy-sauce stoves, sky-blue-glazed open-rimmed washbasins, sky-blue-glazed cylindrical vessels, and Yue kiln carved small bowls. This phase dates to the late Northern Song Dynasty, during the reigns of Emperors Zhezong, Huizong, and Qinzong. Sky-blue-glazed wares are mainly found in this phase, further confirming that Ruzhou produced imperial porcelain for roughly twenty years during the Huizong and Zhezong periods.

Phase IV: Represented by some artifacts from Stratum II. Main vessel shapes include: green-glazed printed interlocking-peony-pattern bowls, green-glazed printed interlocking-peony-pattern plates, white-glazed open shallow-body bowls, white-glazed shallow-body bowls, white-glazed shallow-body rimmed plates, soy-sauce-glazed lip-rim cups, soy-sauce-glazed white-interior bowls, and black-glazed double-handled raised-line-pattern jars. This phase corresponds to the period from the Jin occupation of the Central Plains to the fall of the Jin Dynasty.

Phase V: Represented by artifacts from a well (Stratum 0) beneath Stratum II. Dominated by green-glazed and white-glazed wares, with a certain number of Jun-glazed items. Representative artifacts include: green-brown-glazed double-handled globular jars, green-brown-glazed open deep-body bowls, green-brown-glazed shallow-body plates, sky-blue-glazed red-spotted straight-mouthed small bowls, unglazed deep-body plates, white-glazed grass-script “Qing” character bowls, and white-ground black-flower plates. This phase dates to the Yuan Dynasty.

Thus, it can be seen that the Qingliang Temple Ru porcelain kiln site was first established in the early Song Dynasty, flourished in the late Northern Song Dynasty, continued production during the Jin and Yuan Dynasties, and ceased operations in the late Yuan Dynasty.

Qingliang Temple Village: Qingliang Temple Village…… More details about Qingliang Temple Village++

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Henan Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units