Chinese Porcelain
Chinese porcelain is a durable, beautiful, and historically significant example of ceramic art. It serves as an important industry in China and is greatly admired around the world. The basic recipe for producing porcelain consists of four steps: forming a piece, glazing, decorating, and firing. The firing takes place in a kiln at extremely high […]
Storm in a Teacup: A Visual History of Tea (I)
by Anne Wallentine To dunk or not to dunk, that is the question. Tea is quite a conundrum: it is an uplifting social drink that has caused all manner of chaos,from devastating colonial exploitation to mere ‘violent disputes’ over its brewing methods, as George Orwell wrote. Tea fuelled centuries of imperial expansion, exploitation and industrialisation. […]
Princess Wencheng Elevates Tibetan Culture
On the Tibetan plateau, Kangrinboqe is a world-recognized sacred mountain and is considered the world’s center by Tibetan Buddhism, Hinduism, and primitive Tibetan religions. During the Zhengguan period of the Tang Dynasty, Songtsen Gampo, the ruler of the Tubo Dynasty who rose in the Yarlung Zangbo river valley, was defeated after invading the border of […]