1. Chinese Ming
Dynasty Vases

2. Ming Vases
• Ming vases sell for millions
(the record is $72 million)
What makes them so
special?
– Ming dynasty 1368–1644 ad
– Special technology advances
allowed for blue glazes to not
run, and to be consistent in
color
– The white part of the ceramic
was translucent

3. So, the blue glaze was better. . .But how?
Tang Dynasty Vase, 581-907 ad, Ming Dynasty Vase, 1368-1644
$1200 ad, $1.3 million

4. I’ve seen vases like that everywhere!
• Because they are valuable, there are a lot of
fakes.
• How do you identify a real Ming vase?
– Become an expert; read lots of books
– Ceramic should be translucent, not opaque
– Dragon designs
– Fish designs
– Flowers (peonies and lotus)
– Dark blue (light blue = fake!)
– Blurry looking is fake!
– Real Ming has a special mark on the base

5. Can you spot the fakes?

12. Making your own Ming
• Consider including these
elements to make your
vase look Ming
– Dragons
– Flowers (peonies and lotus)
– Fish
– Floral and leaf designs (like
vines etc.)
– Dark blue “glaze”