Ｐｏｒｃｅｌａｉｎ Ｂｕｉｌｄｓ Ｂｒｉｄｇｅｓ ｏｆ Ｆｒｉｅｎｄｓｈｉｐ Ｂｅｔｗｅｅｎ Ｃｈｉｎｅｓｅ ａｎｄ Ｄｕｔｃｈ

Porcelain is a major invention in ancient China. As early as in the Han Dynasty， the celadon ware was fired， which is as crystal and clear as jade. By the Tang Dynasty， the compact pure white porcelain was fired. Ceramics firing technology reached a mature stage. Joseph Needham， a well-known British scientist， honorary professor of the University of Cambridge and the author of History of Science and Technology of China， once said in his book: “The pocelain technology in Europe and the U.S. falls behind for 10 or 12 centuries， as compared to China”. It was not until the 18th century that Jingdezhen porcelain technology of China was spread to Europe and compact pure white porcelain was produced there. Therefore， chinaware based on Jingdezhen porcelain was exported to Europe through the Silk Road as early as in the Yuan Dynasty. Kings， nobles and ministers in various countries of Europe regarded China’s blue and white porcelain as a treasure more expensive than gold. Entrusted by the court， merchants from various countries arrived in China to purchase or order Chinese porcelain. In the Ming Dynasty， to satisfy the needs in the European market， Spain， Portugal， Sweden， Holland and other countries established East India Company successively， and sent out large numbers of merchant ships， which arrived in Guangzhou， China， specially to purchase chinaware， tea， silk and other handicrafts， making a 300 percent profit.

In the 16th and 17th centuries， among the various East India Companies of European countries， who bought Chinese porcelain and other commodities， Holland was the biggest purchaser for the longest time. In the 17th century， Holland developed into a ship-building leader in Europe， its fleets and merchant ships substituting gradually for those of Portugal and Spain and dominating the seas， and it became a great power in maritime trade. In 1610 (the 28th year of the reign of Emperor Wanli in the Ming Dynasty)， Holland East India Company purchased 10，000 pieces of blue and white porcelain in Guangzhou， while the amount in 1614 increased to 70，000. According to the statistics compiled by European scholars based on the historical record of Holland East India Company， in the eighty years from 1602 to 1682 AD， Holland East India Company shipped 12 million pieces of chinaware， mostly Jingdezhen porcelain， from Guangzhou， China. In 1669 (the 8th year of Emperor Kangxi’s reign in the Qing Dynasty) alone， the Company dispatched 190 merchant ships to Guangzhou to transport chinaware， silk fabrics， tea and other handicrafts， almost monopolizing trade between Europe and China at the time.

With the massive Chinese porcelain shipped to Europe continuously， the needs of European people were met. But the kings， nobles and ministers felt that though Chinese porcelain was incomparably fine in its decorative art， its forms， however， did not quite suit European lifestyle. So in 1635， the Dutch merchants， acting on the requirement of the imperial palace and the market demand， brought to Guangzhou drawings and wooden models of the earthenware household utensils that Europeans liked， such as lunch dish， pitcher， washbasin， small wine pot， double-handle vase， candlestick， etc.， and invited Jingdezhen porcelain craftsmen to copy them according to the original patterns. The smart Jingdezhen craftsmen succeeded just by one trial-production， the customers were greatly satisfied， and hence orders came like snowflakes.

In the second half of the 17th century， the Dutch merchants， in accordance with the requirement of the imperial palace， wanted to draw Dutch landscapes and European pattern designs on porcelain. They brought famous paintings of the Dutch painter Rembrandt’s and designs of other artists’ to Guangzhou， and specially assigned staff to Jingdezhen to invite the local craftsmen to draw and make porcelain according to the samples. Thus Jingdezhen craftsmen began to draw on porcelain Rembrandt’s famous paintings， and Holland landscapes including windmill， Rotterdam streets， tulips， fishermen whaling in the North Sea， polar bear， walrus， etc. They were so vividly portrayed that customers were very contented and orders came in a steady stream. Ordering with samples lasted for over 40 years. The Dutch merchants slowly reduced their orders only when the royal porcelain factory in Delft city， Holland， succeeded in imitating Chinese blue and white porcelain and began to produce it in batches. Nevertheless， the beautiful Jingdezhen blue and white porcelain， rice-pattern porcelain and artistic porcelain still remained the favourites of the Dutch and Europeans. Praised as “white gold” by the Europeans， Chinese porcelains were exported to Holland and then sold to other European countries. They met the European needs and preferences， and introduced Chinese porcelain-making technology， thus impelling the development of the porcelain industry in Holland and Europe as a whole， and promoting friendly exchanges and enhancing mutual understanding and friendship between the Chinese and Dutch people. As early as in 1656 (the 13th year of the reign of Emperor Shunzhi in the Qing Dynasty)， Holland sent envoy Nieuhof to have an audience with Emperor Shunzhi to request for broadening trade. Later， he went to Nanjing to investigate the Porcelain Tower， and wrote a memoir after returning home. In 1794 (the 59th year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty)， envoy Houekgoest was assigned to lead seven officials to China. On behalf of King William V， he presented a national gift to Emperor Qianlong， who gave in return refined high-quality porcelain vases and silks， and bestowed on the envoy and officials porcelains from the official kiln. From then on， friendly intercourse continued steadily. In the 17th century， through East India Company， Delft imported white glaze and pigment for blue and white porcelain from Jingdezhen and other places of China， and began to imitate the Chinese blue and white porcelain and make blue and white pottery with white glaze. The kingdom of the Netherlands also set up a Vice Consulate in Jiujiang， Jiangxi Province. In 1764， as a result of the spread of Jingdezhen porcelain technology to Holland， the “Delft Blue”， a type of blue and white porcelain， came into being and became popular in the entire Europe.

After the People’s Republic of China was founded， especially since the reform and opening up policy was adopted， friendly personages， resident officials in China， ceramic entrepreneurs and ceramic artists from Holland have visited China one after another， and new development has been witnessed in the friendship and the ceramic cultural exchange between the two countries. In October 1980， Yan Changde， a Chinese Dutch and professor of a university in Holland， led a 6-person ceramic study group to visit Jingdezhen and investigate porcelain production. He signed with a ceramic export corporation for importing 27，000 pieces of high-quality Jingdezhen porcelain. In October 1983， Huang Ruipin， vice president of the Netherlands-China Friendship Association， Rotterdam Branch led a goodwill group to Jingdezhen once again to investigate ceramic production in China and carry on scientific and technological exchange between the two sides. In June 1986， Roland Vander Berg， the ambassador of the Netherlands to China， and his wife， visited Jingdezhen， which promoted friendship between the two countries.

In recent years， the China Jingdezhen International Ceramics Fair， jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce， the China National Light Industry Council， the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the Jiangxi Provincial People’s Government， has been held 5 times in Jingdezhen. More than 300 ceramic districts from European， American， Asian and African countries have participated in the Fair. Dutch ceramic artists have also come to Jingdezhen for this grand event.

In October 2005， the famous Dutch ceramic artist Veide Hungue， participated in the Jindezhen International Fair， visited the Ceramic Museum and ancient kilns， and gave a skill demonstration with the hope of further enhancing the friendship between Delft and Jingdezhen. In October 2007， Zhao Hui， deputy director of the Foreign and Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the Jiangxi Provincial People’s Government， led the Jiangxi friendship cities delegation to visit Delft. Zhao Hui， and Liang Lili， vice chairperson of the Standing Committee of the Jingdezhen Municipal People’s Congress， had a friendly talk with Lian Merkx， vice mayor of Delft， on the establishment of friendship-city relationship between the two cities and reached consensus. From September 20 to 21， 2008， Bas Verkerk， mayor of Delft， led a delegation to visit Jingdezhen， had friendly talks with Yu Xiuming， vice mayor of Jingdezhen， and reached agreement on cooperation in education， scientific research and ceramic business， and signed a letter of intent on the establishment of friendship-city relations between the two cities. Hence friendship and cooperation between the two cities entered a new phase. During the 2008 China Jingdezhen International Ceramics Fair， the royal porcelain factory in Delft was invited to participate in the exhibition. About 60 items of artistic ceramics of Delft Blue were on display， and a senior artist of the factory gave a demonstration. From October 17 to 21， 2008， Vice Mayor Lian Merkx， and Richard Lannoye， deputy general manager of Royal Delft， led a government delegation to take part in the Fair. On October 19， Mayor Li Fang and Vice Mayor Yu Xiuming of Jingdezhen had a cordial meeting with Lian Merkx and other members of the delegation. The ceramic exchange and friendly cooperation between China and the Netherlands have scaled a new height.