Spectroscopic Analysis of Porcelain-Making Materials Excavated From the Ding Kiln Site
CHEN Dian1, CUI Jian-feng2*, QIN Da-shu3*, HUANG Xin4, LI Xin5
1. Archaeology and Art Research Center for Pottery and Porcelain, School of History, Beijing Normal University，Beijing 100875, China
2. Key Laboratory of Archaeological Science of Ministry of Education of Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
3. Department of Archaeology, Hangzhou City Univerisity，Hangzhou 310015, China
4. Hebei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Shijiazhuang 050031, China
5. Institute of Archeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Abstract：This paper restored the formula of the Ding ware at different times for the first time by analyzing the raw materials for porcelain making that had been unearthed at the kiln site. Spectroscopic examinations such as ED-XRF compositional analysis and XRD structural analysis were performed on over twenty types of ceramic raw materials recovered from the Ding Ware workshop site archaeological excavations spanning the Five Dynasties to the Song and Jin periods in 2009. ED-XRF analysis revealed that these materials could be categorized as either Singular raw materials or composite raw materials, including rocks, clay, and plant ash for the former, and body and glaze materials for the latter. XRD analysis demonstrated that the kaolin-type raw materials utilized for producing Ding Ware white porcelain are feldspar-type mineral raw materials comprising montmorillonite and calcite-associated quartz. High-iron clay raw materials, characterized by their exceptionally high iron content, are presumably used for black glaze. The analysis of calcareous raw materials concurs with the findings of scholars such as Kang Baoqiang, who postulated that the glaze materials for Ding Ware might have been composed of 40% lime and 60% pine ash. AdditionGlaze ash was also identified, ash produced by calcining limestone with plants. In the analysis of the glaze of Ding Ware white porcelain from the Five Dynasties, it was inferred that glaze ash was utilized, thus the use of glaze as. Thusing Ware could be traced back to as early as the Five Dynasties, marking the earliest documented instance of using glaze ash in glazing. XRD crystalline phase analysis of the body raw materials indicated that aside from quartz and kaolinite being predominant quartz and kaolinite, they also contained feldspar, montmorillonite, and calcite, erals. X-ray diffraction analysis of singular raw materials showed that quartz is a mineral found in both clay and rocks, suggestint quartz may not be an essential additive for the porcelain body. Quartz and kaolinite are the principal components of clay raw materials, therefore body raw materials shou. Therefore, consist of rock-type and clay raw materials. The body materials for Ding Ware fine white porcelain likely utilized a formulation that combined clay raw materials with the first type of rock-type raw materials, with the proportion during the Jin period approximately 1∶1, and about 7∶3 (clay∶rock) during the Northern Song period, and roughly 6∶4 during the Five Dynasties. The analysis of glaze raw materials demonstrated that the glazing materials for Ding Ware were formed by combining rock-type raw materials with glaze ash, with a ratio of rock to ash about 9∶1 during the Five Dynasties and Northern Song periods, which decreased by half to 9.5∶0.5 in the Jin period. This has provided a more precise understanding of the body and glaze formulations during the peak period of Ding Ware, thereby furnishing robust evidence for the re-firing of Ding Kiln.
Key words：Ding Kiln; Ceramic raw materials; Spectroscopic analysis
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