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Civilization Object No. 022
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Cloisonné Enamel

景泰蓝

A brilliant enameling technique from the Ming Dynasty, creating intricate patterns with metal wires and colored glass paste.

dna Heritage DNA
history Origin

Ming Dynasty, Jingtai period (1450–1457 CE)

category Domain

traditional crafts

verified Level

National Heritage

pin_drop Region

North China

pulse Status

active

Cloisonné (jingtailan) is a decorative metalwork technique where thin metal wires are soldered onto a metal object to form cells (cloisons), which are then filled with colored enamel paste and fired. Originating in the Ming Dynasty's Jingtai period (1450–1457), the craft is known for its brilliant blue hues, intricate patterns, and labor-intensive process involving dozens of steps.

auto_stories

Stories & Legends

How Cloisonné Entered the Imperial Court

historical

The art of trapping color in metal, from Byzantium to Beijing.

build

Skills & Techniques

Cloisonné Enameling expand_more

The process of decorating metal objects with colored glass paste held in place by thin metal wires.

Steps

  1. Shape the metal base (copper or bronze) by hammering
  2. Solder thin copper wires onto the surface to form pattern cells
  3. Fill each cell with colored enamel paste
  4. Fire in a kiln to fuse the enamel
  5. Polish the surface to reveal the wire pattern and enamel gloss
  6. Gild the exposed wire partitions with gold

Tools

soldering iron, fine tweezers, kiln, polishing stone, engraving burin

Materials

copper sheet, copper wire, enamel powder (various colors), gold leaf, borax flux

hub Knowledge Graph

Relationship Constellation

This heritage item connects to 8 entities across the atlas — masters, places, festivals, and stories.

pin_drop Beijing location build Cloisonné Enameling skill person Ming Dynasty dynasty auto_stories How Cloisonné Entered the Imperial Court story person Cloisonné Craft media person North China region person Cloisonné Craft media person Cloisonné Craft media
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