The origins of Chinese celadon began before the Shang dynasty in the 16th century with the firing of “primitive celadon”. According to current archaeological data, fired celadon was already in existence during the Eastern Han dynasty in Shangyu in the southern region of Zhejiang. Tang dynasty poet Lu Guimeng praised the beauty of celadon from the Yue Kiln in the millennium-old verse “When the Yue Kiln opens in the depths of autumn, emerald green of a thousand peaks is won.” Celadon from the Yaozhou Kiln in Xiaxi Province in the north developed until the late Five Dynasties reaching a pinnacle in the early Northern Song. These vessels of imperial tribute applied craft techniques of carving, painting, appliqué and embossing with a rich green glaze. A sky blue glaze was achieved in celadon during the Song dynasty. Celadon produced by the Ru Kiln in the late Northern Song dynasty won accolades for its translucent brilliant glaze, described as “blue skies where clouds break after a rain,” and for being jade-like, not jade, but superior to jade, and these vessels were used in imperial court. Literary masterpieces from the Northern Song documents official kilns in Hangzhou with the description: “earth clarified, extremely fine, saturated glaze color, treasured throughout the world.” In recent years, porcelain fragments have been excavated from ancient kiln sites in Hangzhou, enabling a thorough study of aesthetic accomplishments achieved in the official kilns.

Since the Song dynasty, Longquan celadon has held the helm for the variety of designs and abundance of production. Archeological excavations from the Longquan Kiln in Zhejiang and more recently, the Fengdongyan area, have been astounding. Trade networks during the Song and Yuan Dynasties enabled vast quantities of export. The clarity and brilliance of the emerald glaze produced in Longquan attracted the attention of the European and Middle Eastern markets, and influenced the development of Japanese and Korean celadon. Europeans favored the green-hued Longquan porcelain and referred to it as Celadon. And the Taub Palace in Turkey possessed a large collection. In East Asia, China's firing technology travelled to Korea where celadon was successfully produced in the 10th century. By the 11th century, Koryo celadon was known for developing its characteristic clear blue green “emerald celadon” glaze. Excavations of numerous Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasty celadon ware dating back to the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods in Japan have been called “Kinuta”, “Tenryū-ji”, and “Nanakan-shu”. In the developmental history of Japanese celadon firing technology, Imari Kiln was completed in the early part of the 17th century, and Nabeshima Kiln completed in the 19th century.

The millennia of celadon craft and firing techniques have not waned to date. This exhibition of East Asian celadon brings together archeological, historical and contemporary celadon works from China, Japan and Korea to enable an appreciation of the aesthetics of celadon.