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Xia Dynasty Pottery

The first of the acknowledged Chinese Dynasties the Xia ( 2,100 - 1,600 BC ) coincides with the beginning of the Bronze Age in China and the emergence of a society where the emphasis turned from the making of pottery to that of the new technology; metallurgy. As a consequence the developments made in the art of pottery were less significant to those that were achieved with the production of bronze and copper. While bronze could not replace clay as the principle material for the making of utensils and vessels for daily life it did have the effect of shifting the direction of the artists and craftsmen away from pottery.

The Xia Dynasty potters carried on the techniques developed during the Neolithic Period making pottery from both red and gray clays using both coil and wheel methods. The potters wheel originates from the late Neolithic period and resulted in a fundamental change in the nature of the pottery. Pottery produced on the wheel was thinner walled and the clays used also began to have a fine grain structure. The designs were still similar to those of the late Neolithic with stylized designs common and also the appearance of pictorial designs of birds, animals, and in some cases battle scenes.

Aliened with the developments occurring with the bronze industry were developments in kiln technology that would allow for the firing of pottery at higher temperatures and at temperatures that were more controllable.