What this book will do for you

This book contains a short overview over the most important pre-Yuan kiln kilns and their wares. This is needed for understanding some earlier wares, which you may encounter. However, the actual benefit of this writing is a multitude of individual hints and pieces of information, that assist you in dating and period verification. Many of these details are hard to come by reading books or searching the internet.

• Learn about individual traits that are often conclusive regarding antique age

• Spend less time identifying or dating antiques more quickly by using specific detail features
  

• Information always at hand when needed

• Use the search function or table of contents to scan for key informations helping with verification

INTRODUCTION

The intermediate identification criteria mentioned in this book assume that you already have some knowledge regarding the more basic authentication of Chinese ceramics. What is provided here is advanced information for intermediate level identification.

Paying attention to details and analyzing the features of an item in view to these is THE method for authentication. The only other method that may compare to this, if applied correctly, is scientific material analysis using modern equipment.

Many collectors do not want to go through the tedious learning process involving the small details. From the pattern of website usage of the website at www.chinese-antique-porcelain.com it is easy to deduct that many visitors think they can just identify the marks in order to know what they have. That may be possible with western porcelain, but not with Chinese ceramics, which often use apocryphal marks or none at all.
Please do not fall into the trap that many novice collectors fall into, namely that any items not conforming to the statistically established rules must be a rarity. Chances are generally much higher that such an item simply is a modern creation or fake antique. Do not waste too much time looking for similar items. Experience shows that if you keep studying or collecting Chinese ceramics you will often come across a similar item, earlier or later, if authentic. As  experience increases, it also happens that without any undue further effort on our side we often come to understand whether a specific item in question is more likely authentic or fake, as our experience increases.

Fact is that many Chinese marks do neither allow dating of ceramic items nor do they identify the manufacturing kiln. What is provided here are characteristics and details that help with advanced identification and dating, that are not much mentioned elsewhere. These can usually only be obtained with years of collecting experience.

Information helping with dating of some older pre-Ming kiln items is also provided although with limits. Any information on ceramics from before the Song dynasty is based on archaeologic research, nowadays, as there is virtually no mentioning of ceramics in Chinese literature of those earlier periods.

Nothing is really absolute in Chinese ceramics. The details and rules explained here were gleaned by researchers from existing museum items as well as archaeological research of kiln sites in China and/or ancient shipwrecks. Statistical information obtained by researchers from hundreds of thousands of shards retrieved from the waste mounds of ancient kilns can provide much more information than collections would. Some of this iis provided here in a simplified form.