Category:Tang period

The Tang period (唐代, 618–907 CE) represents a major phase of political consolidation, economic expansion, and cultural diversification in Chinese history. The imperial capitals at Chang’an and Luoyang functioned as administrative, commercial, and cosmopolitan centers linked to vast internal markets and extended overland and maritime exchange networks. The development of state institutions, urban infrastructure, and regulated artisan systems provided the basis for large-scale craft production.

Material culture during the Tang period reflects both courtly and regional traditions. Workshop organization expanded significantly, with specialized production centers supplying the needs of the imperial household, religious institutions, and urban markets. State-sponsored and privately managed kiln systems coexisted, contributing to a broad range of ceramic types and stylistic vocabularies.

Ceramic production of the period is characterized by:

• Continued development of high-fired stonewares across northern and southern regions
• Increased standardization of vessel forms suited to domestic and ritual use
• The emergence of transparent and semi-transparent glazes with refined surface qualities
• Participation in long-distance trade across Central Asia, the Middle East, and coastal maritime routes

Sculptural production associated with funerary and religious contexts expanded considerably. Tomb figures and architectural ornament were produced in both regional and capital-associated workshops, reflecting diverse iconographic influences including Buddhist and Central Asian visual languages.

While lead-glazed sancai wares are closely associated with Tang material culture and will be treated separately, the broader ceramic landscape of the Tang period includes a wide range of undecorated, high-fired wares that continued the technological developments of the late Six Dynasties. These wares formed the technical and aesthetic foundation for subsequent advances in Song dynasty ceramics.

The significance of the Tang period lies in the integration of regional craft systems into transregional cultural and economic networks, the formation of new modes of visual and material expression, and the establishment of workshop and kiln structures that facilitated the emergence of highly refined ceramic traditions in later periods.