A Kiln Site Yielding Blue-and-White Porcelain Shard Featuring a Celestial Hors
Shards, White porcelain excavated from the kiln sites No.9 in Beoncheon-ri, Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do Province
  • Joseon Dynasty, 15th-16th century
  • Gongju National Museum(kou 52555)

Excavations at the Beoncheon-ri Kiln Site No. 9, conducted between 1998 and 1999, uncovered two kilns and seven workshop sites, along with a range of ceramic types, including plain white porcelain, inlaid white porcelain, blue-and-white porcelain, and celadon. The white porcelain vessels exhibit clear differences in quality, with some high-grade examples bearing inscriptions on the outer bottom, such as cheon (天, heaven), ji (地, earth), hyeon (玄, black), and hwang (黃, yellow). Among the finds, a fragment of a blue-and-white porcelain lid depicting a celestial horse galloping among waves and clouds is particularly noteworthy, exemplifying the high level of artistry achieved in blue-and-white porcelain production at government-operated kilns during the early Joseon period.