Is it not necessary to wear gloves when identifying porcelain?

Although blue and white porcelain appeared as early as the tang dynasty, its quality was generally average.

Later, through the Five Dynasties, Song, Liao, Jin, and Yuan periods, due to the Mongolian imperial family's preference for colors like blue and white, the blue and white porcelain craftsmanship underwent a transformative breakthrough.

Because of this, we, later generations, call it yuan blue and white porcelain, and each piece can fetch a high price.

Since yuan blue and white porcelain is so valuable, why are there only a few pieces genuinely seen?

That's because yuan blue and white porcelain was not only for imperial use but also an important artifact for communication with foreign nations.

This led to many pieces of yuan blue and white porcelain being kept abroad, while the number domestically is not large.

The Yuan Dynasty transitioned from a nomadic lifestyle to an empire and required a large amount of capital.

At that time, the Persian region had a developed economy and was rich in precious gems such as gold and turquoise.

The people there highly sought after porcelain, and due to religious beliefs, blue and white were colors pursued by religious followers.

Therefore, selling porcelain to Persians in exchange for wealth became a very important mission for yuan blue and white porcelain.

Even, to make Persians favor yuan blue and white porcelain at first glance, some Western Region potters were brought in to work together.

This also resulted in the overall form of yuan blue and white porcelain being full of exotic flavor.

Furthermore, the 'Su Ma Li Qing' cobalt material used for coloring yuan blue and white porcelain has long been lost.

Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties could not replicate yuan blue and white porcelain, the small quantity is understandable.

In other words, the yuan blue and white porcelain circulating on the market today is either a genuine piece from the Yuan Dynasty or a modern replica.

This way, distinguishing between genuine and fake becomes much easier...

After this section, Nan Ye's mouth was dry, but this was only part of the history of yuan blue and white porcelain.

Of course, saying this is for later use!

Several old scholars nodded frequently; Nan Ye being able to say so much indicates that he has a certain level of research on yuan blue and white porcelain.

Liu Xuechi chuckled: "I feel like he gave us a popular science lesson, haha!"

Nan Ye awkwardly rubbed his head; he naturally heard Liu Xuechi's teasing.

For a few old scholars, how could they not know this basic knowledge.

What they disliked was that Nan Ye had not yet gotten to the main point.

Actually, Nan Ye did this to explain to the people in the live stream.

Since he chose to stand out and show off, he might as well harvest a wave of emotional value.

Liu Xuechi continued: "Since Nan Ye has talked about this, I'll add a couple of points.

In fact, besides Su Ma Li Qing, there is another important reason why the Ming and Qing Dynasties couldn't replicate yuan blue and white porcelain.

That is the painting technique of yuan blue and white porcelain, which was absolutely top-notch, making it difficult for later generations to match.

Grand, unrestrained, free-spirited, elegant...

Why was this the case?

Because yuan blue and white porcelain was painted by first-rate painters, such as Wang Yuan, Ke Jiusi, Zhao Yong, Wang Meng, Lai An, and others from the Yuan Dynasty.

These people all went to Jingdezhen and painted on yuan blue and white porcelain.

Hearing Liu Xuechi's words, many people were shocked:

【Really? One of the four great painters of the Yuan Dynasty, Wang Meng, also painted on yuan blue and white porcelain?】

【They were all done by famous painters, no wonder yuan blue and white porcelain is so rare.】

【As far as I know, Wang Meng rarely painted on porcelain. yuan blue and white porcelain was painted more by Wang Yuan and Ke Jiusi.

If a piece of yuan blue and white porcelain is confirmed to be done by Wang Meng, the price would likely be ridiculously high.】

【...】

Liu Xuechi made a gesture, signaling Nan Ye to continue.

Nan Ye didn't stand on ceremony and asked directly, "Can I handle it?"

"Of course!" Liu Xuechi did not refuse.

To be able to tell genuine from fake without handling it, that would be a god, not a human.

Seeing Nan Ye handle it without gloves, someone quickly raised a question:

【Don't you need to wear gloves when appraising cultural relics?】

Soon, a Netizen named ""Nuomi Porcelain"" stepped forward to answer:

"Not wearing gloves is correct; the sweat on human hands is composed only of water and salt and will not damage the porcelain surface.

It will only be damaged if scratched by a sharp object or soaked in corrosive liquid.

On the other hand, wearing white gloves and handling smooth porcelain makes it easy to accidentally drop the porcelain, thus damaging the cultural relic.

An average person can't afford to compensate!

Even if they could compensate, it's still damaging a cultural relic and they would be drowned in criticism.

Moreover, experts need to use their hands to touch and feel the body and patterns on the porcelain surface; only through touch can they authenticate the porcelain.

Therefore, when appraising porcelain, white gloves are usually not worn.

Those who wear gloves are either laymen or swindlers."

【Wow, so that's the reason, learned something new.】

【From now on, if there are programs or live streams where they wear gloves to appraise porcelain, I can just swipe past them.】

【Does that mean Nan Ye really has the skill to appraise porcelain?】

【Probably so, let's listen to what he says first...】

After examining it for a while, Nan Ye looked up: "To authenticate, the first thing to look at is the form.

Look closely at the rim, neck, shoulder, belly, foot, etc., to determine if it has the characteristics of Yuan Dynasty forms.

Following up on the previous point, the external shape of yuan blue and white porcelain is full of exotic flavor.

This results in the external shapes of yuan blue and white porcelain being quite peculiar.

But even so, bottle and jar-shaped yuan blue and white porcelain still maintain a characteristic.

The diameters of the mouth and the foot ring are similar, or even equal.

In this regard, the jar in my hand conforms."

Everyone looked and saw that this was indeed the case.

This jar has relatively wide shoulders and a bulging belly, but the mouth and the foot ring are indeed about the same size.

Nan Ye didn't stop and continued: "Slightly rolled rim, short neck, full shoulder, bulging belly, foot retracted, wide foot ring with shallow excavation at the bottom, full form - this is a classic model of yuan blue and white porcelain.

The foot ring is wide and shallow, and the bottom has swirl marks from the turning tool.

The foot rings of bowls are all flared outwards, with the inside of the foot being higher than the outside.

In these aspects, this jar conforms."

He paused for a moment, then continued:

"Second, look at the body material.

From the late Song to the early Yuan Dynasty, a type of soil suitable for firing porcelain was discovered on Macang Mountain near Jingdezhen, called Macang Soil.

Macang Soil was depleted by the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty.

After the Ming Wanli period, Jingdezhen used kaolin from Gaoling Mountain.

This is also one of the reasons for the scarcity of yuan blue and white porcelain.

Research shows that adding about 20% Macang Soil to porcelain stone increases temperature resistance, reduces deformation, improves hardness, and enhances the whiteness and transparency of the porcelain body.

Look at the bottom of the jar; it has fire-red spots, is white but not fine, has many pores, and black spots.

And many fired porcelain pieces will have bubbling phenomena.

These are natural phenomena that are impossible to replicate in high-imitation porcelain.

Therefore, on this point, it can basically be determined that this piece of yuan blue and white porcelain is genuine!"

As soon as Nan Ye said this, both the people on site and the audience in the live stream felt it was not very reliable.