Jiaxing Black Pottery Firing Techniques The origin of Jiaxing black pottery can be traced back to the Majiabang culture more than 7,000 years ago. The pointed-foot tripod black pottery unearthed from Quemu Bridge in Nanhu District, Jiaxing City is a representative exquisite handicraft of that era. Black pottery is known as "the art of earth and fire, the crystallization of strength and beauty", and is another brilliant creation in the pottery making process of the Neolithic Age that can be compared with the art of painted pottery. The characteristics of black pottery art are: the production generally adopts a fast wheel, its shape is symmetrical and regular, the shape is beautiful, the workmanship is fine, the high temperature is fired, and the kiln is sealed. Through the scientific principle of carburization, the carbon particles in the thick smoke in the kiln are infiltrated into the blank. The fired pottery is black and translucent, looks like gold, solid and dignified, and knocks like a chime. It has the characteristics of black, light, bright and thin, giving people a feeling of "black gold and black jade". The formation mechanism and firing process of black pottery are quite complicated. The late Feng Guojie and Xu Mingnong developed black pottery earlier in Jiaxing City. The black pottery crafts they made were put on the domestic and foreign markets in the 1960s and 1970s. The current inheritor Shi Liangjun (born in 1931) has conducted countless experiments since 1987 and finally mastered the firing mechanism of black pottery. He also proposed the new concept of inheriting traditions and developing innovations. The key points of the Jiaxing black pottery firing techniques inherited by Shi Liangjun are as follows: the process method of combining the sealing kiln carburizing method of Longshan black pottery and the reduction kiln change method of Liangzhu black pottery. Raw materials for firing black pottery: the main raw materials are purple sand mud, and the main fuels are firewood, waste wood, log edges, etc., and coal is not suitable. Kiln for firing black pottery: the temperature difference of the kiln chamber should be small, and the S-shaped flame guide type should be adopted, which is a cylindrical top door kiln. The sealing performance should be good and absolutely no air leakage. The highest temperature is 1300. General refractory bricks can be used. The kiln chamber has a top column, a shelf, and a pad. Special products use saggers to bury sand, and the kiln tools are best made of silicon carbide. The key points of black pottery firing process: (1) Loading the pottery blanks into the kiln. There should be gaps between the blanks, and they should be placed compactly. A pad should be placed at the bottom to facilitate reduction and carburization. In order to improve the thermal effect, no space is left in the kiln chamber after it is filled. After loading, cover the top door and plug the side seams with aluminum silicate wool. Cover the top with waste newspapers and then smear it tightly with paper tendons and mud. (2) Preheating and heating. After the kiln is sealed, it should be preheated before ignition. The capacity of a small top-door kiln is 0.12 to 0.3 cubic meters, and it is preheated with a 600W to 800W electric furnace. Generally, it takes about eight to ten hours. When the kiln temperature rises to 120 to 150, ignite and heat up. The heating should not be too rapid. When the kiln temperature rises to 573, keep heating up slowly. At this time, the molecular state in the pottery blank undergoes drastic changes. When the temperature reaches 1150, keep it at a constant temperature for one hour. (3) Cooling down and sealing the kiln for carburization. When the temperature drops to 1000, fill the fire chamber with wood blocks and a small flue to generate a large amount of carbon monoxide in the kiln chamber to reduce the ferric oxide in the pottery. When the temperature slowly drops to 600, fill the fire chamber with wood blocks again and seal the kiln immediately for carburization. When sealing the kiln, seal the flue first and then the fire chamber mouth to prevent outside air from entering the kiln. Check the kiln body and any leaks and smoke must be blocked in time. After cooling, open the kiln and take out the black pottery. At present, the Nanhu District Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center has set up a black pottery studio in Jiaxing Jishui Primary School, and Mr. Shi Liangjun has voluntarily passed on the black pottery firing technique. Jiaxing black pottery firing technique has been included in the first batch of Jiaxing City's intangible cultural heritage list. Information source: Jiaxing Library Information source: Jiaxing Library