Petuntse (from 白墩子 in
pinyin
Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese fo ...
: ), also spelled petunse and ''bai dunzi'', ''baidunzi'', is a historic term for a wide range of
micaceous or
feldspathic rocks. However, all will have been subject to geological decomposition processes that result in a material which, after processing, is suitable as an ingredient in some
ceramic
A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain, ...
formulations. The name means "little white bricks", referring to the form in which it was transported to the potteries (compare
ball clay).
It was, and to some extent continues to be, an important raw material for
Chinese porcelain
Chinese ceramics show a continuous development since pre-dynastic times and are one of the most significant forms of Chinese art and ceramics globally. The first pottery was made during the Palaeolithic era. Chinese ceramics range from constru ...
, although the terms "porcelain stone", or "pottery stone", are now used. The equivalent term in Chinese is ''cishi''.
It is mixed with
kaolin
Kaolinite ( ) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4. It is an important industrial mineral. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedra ...
in proportions varying according to the grade of porcelain to be produced; equal quantities for the best and two thirds petuntse to one third kaolin for everyday ware. There are large deposits of high quality stone in
Jiangxi
Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...
province in south-eastern China, which became a centre for porcelain production, especially in
Jingdezhen ware.
[Vainker, p. 124.]
While sharing some similarities to the material known as
China stone, which is found uniquely in southwestern England, they differ in
mineralogy
Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the proce ...
. However both are derived from the
alteration
Alteration(s) may refer to:
* Alteration (music), the use of a neighboring pitch in the chromatic scale in place of its diatonic neighbor.
** Alteration, in the mensural notation used by renaissance music, the lengthening of a breve, semibreve or ...
of
igneous rock
Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma o ...
s.
Notes
References
*Macintosh, D., ''Chinese Blue and White Porcelain'', 3rd ed., 1994, Antique Collectors' Club,
*Rose Kerr, Joseph Needham, Nigel Wood, ''Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 5, Chemistry and Chemical Technology'', Part 12, ''Ceramic Technology'', 2004, Cambridge University Press,
google books*
Rawson, Jessica (ed). ''The British Museum Book of Chinese Art'', 2007 (2nd edn), British Museum Press,
*Vainker, S.J., ''Chinese Pottery and Porcelain'', 1991, British Museum Press,
Chinese porcelain
Ceramic materials
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