When you are looking for ideas into a heartfelt gift for a milestone birthday, a new baby announcement or a well-earned achievement, it can be difficult to sift through all the potential gifts in order to make a solid decision. Jewellery or silverware? A simple card or thought out poem? A piece of artwork or a memory book? There are so many choices to pick from.
In some cases it is a good idea to choose a gift that is both beautiful and practical, a gift that will get some use in its new home and porcelain makes an ideal gift for just this reason. Whether you buy a porcelain figurine or some intricate porcelain crockery, the new gift will be treasured and treated with care. But what does giving porcelain actually symbolise?
Porcelain in China
Porcelain as we have come to know it first originated in China from the time of the Eastern Han Dynasty period – 206BC – 220AD. However the style of porcelain and its construction methods were not perfected until porcelain manufacturing was exported to the Islamic world during the Tang Dynasty in 618 – 907AD. Many areas of East Asia caught on quickly following this and soon the manufacture of porcelain was organised over many sites, with some sites able to fire as many as 25,00 wares during their activation.
By the 1500’s, Porcelain was in high demand across East Asia and even Europe, with some styles more highly sought after than others due to their make and manufacturer. Jingdezhen porcelain was considered to be the most famous, as it represented a source of imperial pride and was used as tribute offerings, making it highly sought after in the western world. Owning valuable porcelain became known as a sign of wealth and prosperity.
Porcelain in Europe
Chinese porcelain was rare and hard to come by as attempts to duplicate were not fully understood and many attempts failed, until the start of the 1700’s when the methods for manufacturing porcelain were finally revealed. Because of this, Chinese porcelains were held in very high esteem, causing the term ‘china’ to circulate as a term synonymous with porcelain.
Delicate and Intricate
While strong in its own right and highly resistant to heat, porcelain is a delicate material and that makes it precious. Porcelain gifts can be as intricate or as simple as you like in their design and you will often see beautiful porcelain pieces making great tea and china sets for lunch time cream tea. More detailed porcelain figurines make fantastic gifts as they can represent a certain milestone or achievement in the recipient’s life, or one of their hobbies as there are a number of porcelain figurines dedicated to dancing and ballet, to use an example.
A Gift to Last
Porcelain has been around for hundreds of years, with countless artisans working to recreate many beautiful designs that will last for many more years to come. From detailed animal sculptures and tinted figurines to more simple, yet aesthetic porcelain cutlery and crockery, porcelain comes in a wide range of shapes, sizes and finishes. Whether you’re looking for a plain teacup with a swirled design around its rim, or a more detailed figurine of a ballerina on point, porcelain makes a fantastic gift, whatever the occasion and it is surely one that your recipient will treasure for years.
Article provided by The Chinaman; the porcelain, fine china, glass, crystal and dinnerware specialist established over 40 years ago – with a shop in Sevenoaks, Kent and two online superstores.