Yingge offers more than just pottery<\/p>\n
When I first learned that a visit to Yingge, a small town in the
\nsouthernmost part of Taipei County, was included on our schedule,
\nI wondered how the trip would be, considering that some parts of
\nIndonesia are also famous for their pottery.<\/p>\n
After a drive of around one hour from Taipei, our group --
\ncomprising around 30 journalists from South America, Eastern
\nEurope and Asia invited by the Taiwanese government -- arrived in
\nthe small town.<\/p>\n
The first stop was the Yingge Ceramics Museum. There, we
\nlearned the history of Taiwan's ceramic industry from its early
\ndays through to the second world war and the modern era.<\/p>\n
We also learned how ceramic articles are produced, including
\nentering a replica of a giant charcoal stove.<\/p>\n
Then, we visited Jianshanpu Road, better known as Old Pottery
\nStreet. The road is closed to vehicles other than bicycles and
\nmotorcycles.<\/p>\n
Along the road, dozens of shops offer numerous ceramic
\nproducts in a variety of designs -- from tea sets to lamps and
\nsmall decorative water fountains.<\/p>\n
The items are priced from T$35 (or around US$10.40) for a
\nsingle small tea cup to thousands of dollars for bigger
\ndecorative pottery works.<\/p>\n
The name Yingge means parrot. It was apparently given to the
\ntown after the landmark parrot-shaped rock that is perched on the
\nlower slopes of a mountain on the town's northern outskirts.<\/p>\n
People first began to manufacture pottery in Yingge in 1804,
\nand a century ago the ceramics industry was flourishing there due
\nto the suitability of the local clay and the convenience of rail
\nand (formerly) river transportation.<\/p>\n
Countless craftsmen and artists have worked to improve their
\ntechniques, including clay selection, forming, glazing and
\nfiring.<\/p>\n
Most people assume that pottery and ceramics are one and the
\nsame. But, actually the two are quite different.<\/p>\n
Besides using different types of clay, pottery is fired at
\ntemperatures under 1,250 Celsius degrees, while ceramics must use
\nthe temperature of above 1,260 degrees.<\/p>\n
Pottery, also known as earthenware, has been around for about
\n8,000 years, but ceramics and porcelain only date back about
\n3,000 years.<\/p>\n
In the early years of the industry in Yingge, the products
\nmade were mostly for everyday use.<\/p>\n
Now the kilns used in firing have advanced from the
\n\"primitive\" kilns of the Qing Dynasty to modern gas-fired tunnel
\nkilns, and more articles are produced not for practical use but
\nfor esthetic purposes.<\/p>\n
To help bring Yingge's ceramics industry into line with the
\ninternational industry, the Yingge Ceramics Festival was held in
\n2001. The aim of this yearly event is to build Yingge's
\ninternational reputation as a specialized ceramics industrial
\nzone and create new vistas for this high-end industry as well as
\nfor cultural tourism.<\/p>\n
In Yingge, several stores offer crash courses for budding
\npotters. Children and teenagers are particularly enthusiastic
\nabout making their own tea cups and the like.<\/p>\n
Too bad we only had one hour to look around Yingge. Otherwise,
\nI could have attempted one of those courses myself.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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