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The central government should help Jingdezhen, a city in east
China's Jiangxi Province with a thousand years of ceramic history
behind, to be accepted in World's Historical and Cultural Heritage
List, urged Su Xiaoqin, a NPC deputy and secretary of the municipal
Party committee of Jingdezhen.
Su expressed her excitement over the importance Premier Zhu had
attached to cultural heritage protection in the government's 10th
Five-Year Plan (2001-05). Jingdezhen's ceramic culture has an
important part in the nation's heritage.
Jingdezhen, a city well-known for Porcelain-making, has enjoyed a
big fame through 2,000 years history, viewed "unparalleled"
worldwide in craftsmanship and artistry by experts from the United
Nations.
Many people from other countries began to know China through
porcelain, called "china" in English, which largely came from
Changnan (nowaday's Jingdezhen). The city's ceramic making has been
recorded since the Han Dynasty (BC206-220) in Xinping (later called
Changnan, eventually Jingdezhen). Starting in AD 1004 of the
Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), Jingdezhen's products were
exclusively earmarked for royal family use.
Jingdezhen's chinaware has unique features: white as jade, bright
as a mirror, thin as paper, and pleasantly tinkles when gently
flipped.
Jingdezhen is a place of time-honored culture and numerous cultural
remains. Porcelain from Jingdezhen has enjoyed an international
fame over one thousand years. As an important part of Chinese
culture, Jingdezhen's porcelain art should be carried on and
further developed.
To achieve this goal, Su said the local government should apply for
a World Cultural Heritage listing for the city to attract more
support and funds. In addition, a larger museum of porcelain art
should be built in China. So far, China has only one small museum
of porcelain art established shortly after the founding of People's
Republic of China in 1949. Due to limited floor space, many
valuable items, unearthed ones in particular, cannot be properly
kept and exhibited. Su disclosed that the city would hold a series
of activities to commemorate its millennium history in Oct. 2004.
Su said cultural and natural resources should be better tapped to
develop ceramic making with hi-tech and related packing industry.
According to the deputy, the city has started a technical
revolution since the 1980s to improve workmanship and to increase
product varieties.
Jingdezhen has attracted scholars, tourists, and businessmen alike.
Joint ventures have been set up.
For a long-term porcelain development, Jingdezhen has given
priority to related education. It has the country's only university
in the field, the Jingdezhen Ceramic University. The city offers
courses on porcelain craftsmanship for primary and middle school
students to stimulate their creativity and a love of art.
(CIIC by Guo Xiaohong 03/13/2001)
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