The Forbidden City Collection of Metal-Body Enamelware

Author: Chen Lihua
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-04-01
Features: Chinese metal-core enamelware boasts a distinct national style and excellent artistic traditions. It exudes the luxury and splendor of gold and precious stones. The production process is complex, with challenging preparation and firing techniques, resulting in high production costs. For a long time, it was exclusively used for imperial purposes, primarily crafted in royal workshops within the palace. Except for a small number of enamelware pieces as valuable gifts bestowed upon nobles and officials by imperial decree, very few pieces circulated among the general public and were rarely seen. The Palace Museum, established on the foundations of the imperial palaces of the Ming and Qing dynasties, is a national museum that houses approximately 6,000 pieces of enamelware specially made for emperors and the imperial family during the Ming and Qing periods. These pieces are unparalleled in the world and represent extremely valuable physical materials for studying the development, chronological dating, and authenticity identification of Chinese metal-core enamelware craftsmanship.