Crafts
Jingdezhen porcelain
Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, China
Known as the porcelain capital, Jingdezhen has produced fine white porcelain for more than a thousand years, including blue-and-white ware.
Craft: Porcelain
Clay, glaze and porcelain
Potters turn earth into tableware and tiles. Compare glazes, colours and methods from China to Mexico.
The places
Crafts
Arita porcelain
Arita, Saga, Japan
Japan's first porcelain was made in Arita in the early 17th century. Decorated wares were exported across Europe through the Dutch.
Craft: Porcelain
Crafts
Goryeo celadon
Gangjin, South Jeolla, South Korea
Korean potters of the Goryeo dynasty perfected a delicate green glaze and inlay technique. Gangjin was a major kiln centre.
Craft: Pottery with jade-green glaze
Crafts
Delftware
Delft, Netherlands
Dutch potters imitated imported Chinese porcelain with blue-painted tin-glazed earthenware, which became known as Delft blue.
Craft: Blue-and-white pottery
Crafts
Herend porcelain
Herend, Hungary
A porcelain manufactory founded in 1826 that supplied royal courts across Europe. Every piece is painted by hand.
Craft: Hand-painted porcelain
Crafts
Talavera pottery
Puebla, Mexico
Puebla's tin-glazed pottery, painted in bold blues and other colours, is recognised on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Craft: Glazed ceramics
Crafts
Blue Pottery
Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
Jaipur's blue pottery is glazed with cobalt blue and turquoise floral patterns, and is made from quartz rather than clay.
Craft: Glazed pottery
Crafts
İznik tiles
İznik, Bursa, Turkey
Ottoman potters at İznik made tiles with vivid blue, turquoise and red tulips and carnations that decorate mosques such as the Blue Mosque.
Craft: Painted ceramic tiles
Crafts
Barro negro pottery
San Bartolo Coyotepec, Oaxaca, Mexico
Potters shape clay by hand, polish it with a quartz stone and fire it in a smoky kiln, giving it a shiny black finish.
Craft: Black burnished pottery
Crafts
Hopi pottery
Hopi Mesas, Arizona, United States
Hopi potters build pots by hand from coils of local clay and paint them with traditional designs before firing.
Craft: Hand-coiled painted pottery