Chapter 509: Having One's Face Pressed to the Ground

On the massive screen, several photos of imitation porcelain were incredibly clear.

North Song Dynasty Yingqing Porcelain, Yongle Sweet White Glaze, Chenghua Thin-Body Porcelain, and Doucai Glaze...

Among these few items, if one could restore even a single one of these crafts, it would cause an earthquake-level sensation in the ancient ceramics world, let alone four? But calculating the time, from last July to now, a full half-year has passed; why hasn't a single whisper of news been heard?

Because Lin Sicheng hadn't had the chance to declare it, nor had he established a project, let alone registered it. Yet, he had restored the craft in its entirety a step ahead of time. If the news leaked and someone with crooked intentions wanted to intercept the credit, what then?

Never test human nature; as long as the price is high enough, even one's own son can betray his father. Spending a few hundred thousand or a million to poach the Researchers under Lin Sicheng is not a difficult task.

To be even more ruthless, stealing all his research materials and data in one fell swoop is not impossible either.

By that time, whoever establishes the project first and publishes first, the achievement belongs to them.

For the sake of safety, Lin Sicheng sought out the Forbidden City.

Therefore, the Forbidden City essentially got it for free: no investment needed, no need to collect materials, and they didn't even need a large or highly professional team. They only needed Director Lu to bring two Assistants to verify the few crafts, which might not even take a month.

Inexplicably, a golden mountain fell from the sky; no matter who it was, they would wake up laughing in their dreams.

This includes the Ministry of Culture and the Cultural Relics Bureau as well: the state talks every day about guarding the genetic code of civilization, defending cultural sovereignty, and encouraging cultural continuity. Isn't this ready-made achievement delivered right to their hands?

Procedures are indispensable; one should declare what needs declaring, review what needs reviewing, and establish what needs establishing. But before going through the procedures, couldn't they affirm and encourage him a little?

Thus, the two ministries approving an Intangible Cultural Heritage Center and a Research Center named after an individual became a matter of course, and completely without controversy. To tell the truth: that the Cultural Heritage Department and the Archaeology Department didn't represent the two ministries in using this center of Lin Sicheng's to run some pilot program, and didn't directly hang the ministries' signs at the door, was already the leaders being quite restrained.

Do not think this is an exaggeration; first look at what Lin Sicheng has done:

In four months, he found five kilns, all of which were unprecedented and discovered for the first time.

In four months, he confirmed the inheritance lineage and distribution chain among five dynasties (Tang, Song, Jin, Yuan, Ming) and eight types of famous porcelain (Luanbai Jade, Yingqing Porcelain, Ru Porcelain, Egg White Glaze, Sweet White Glaze, Chenghua Thin-Body, Doucai Glaze, Dehua White).

Also in four months, he completely restored the firing techniques of five types of lost famous porcelain.

Never mind four months; for other units, even a single one of these items might not yield results in four years.

Now, who still dares to ask what qualifications this center has, or why Lin Sicheng is standing here?

The meeting hall was filled with discussion, the voices growing louder and louder.

Suddenly, the screen went dark, and the photo of the porcelain cup disappeared.

Without the reference object, the voices gradually died down.

"Teachers, let us return to the main topic!" Lin Sicheng tapped the microphone: "Division Chief Wei, shall I continue?"

This was a response to that previous question from Wei Ziyu: Everything you mentioned counts at most as archaeological qualifications; what does it have to do with today's cross-examination? Now, do you see if it has anything to do with it?

Wei Ziyu looked depressed: Why is this kid so petty?

Wang Qizhi stood behind, almost laughing out loud.

It wasn't that Lin Sicheng was petty; that simply wasn't his personality.

The reason he deliberately said that was to provide a preventive measure for what was to come: You can question me, but I definitely have reason and evidence.

But while you are doubting me and obstructing me, if you still want me to be polite to you, to coax you, and to treat you with deference, that is impossible.

Even a clay figure has a bit of Fire Qi...

Lin Sicheng signaled, and Director Lu's two Assistants stepped forward and opened the box on the long table.

It was also porcelain: several Brush Washers and one Blue and White piece.

All the Experts opened their eyes wide: Sky Blue Glaze?

Why does it look a bit like Song Ru?

The more they looked, the more it looked like it...

Lin Sicheng clicked the mouse, and pictures appeared on the big screen:

"In October, my teacher and I went to Beijing to represent the center and discuss a joint project with the Forbidden City Ceramic Research Institute. During that time, in order to find more experimental materials, we successively visited major antique markets in Beijing to investigate..."

"It was also at that time that I met Hu Hai and his Partner: at the time, he was setting up a stall to sell a Brush Washer... The process was a bit convoluted, so I won't repeat it. In the end, I spent eight million to buy four Brush Washers and one Blue and White Bowl with iron sand spots from Hu Hai. These are the ones on the screen..."

Lin Sicheng clicked the mouse, magnifying the photos one by one, "I will state the conclusion first: these items are all imitations."

"This one is the earliest, late Ming and early Qing, roughly the Shunzhi period. This one, early Qing Kangxi; this one, Qianlong. This one, roughly Daoguang; this one, Xianfeng... If any teachers are interested, you may handle them."

As soon as the words fell, several people stood up from the observation seats in the back. Without exception, they were all Experts from the Cultural Relics Research Institute's Porcelain Research Group.

They came today specifically to do this: appraisal and cross-examination. Lin Sicheng had brought out more Cultural Relics related to the person Hu Hai, so it certainly had to do with today's case. They definitely had to take a look.

But more than that, they were curious: whether looking at the pictures or the physical objects, they felt these Brush Washers were imitated extremely well, with a very high level of craftsmanship. Lin Sicheng had a reputation, and if he was willing to spend eight million to buy a few imitations, it certainly wasn't simple.

In a flash, they were already at the table, with several Experts each holding an item.

The people opposite Director Lu also felt their hands itching, but most of them focused on research rather than visual appraisal. If they went up and couldn't tell anything, they wouldn't be able to save face.

Of course, it wasn't as if there weren't those who knew their stuff.

Professor Yu nudged Director Chen: "Old Chen, cheer up, let's go over and take a look."

Director Chen sighed: There was nothing to cheer up about.

He was indeed a bit discouraged, but to say he was dejected to the point of losing his will was not the case.

Moreover, Customs had paid them to come. No matter how discouraged he was, he had to finish the job.

He stood up, and the other three followed behind.

Just as they reached the table, an Expert from the Cultural Relics Bureau held up a Brush Washer: "Professor Yu, Professor Liu, take a look: is the glaze luster of this Brush Washer a bit strange?"

These two, one studied the application of proton-induced X-ray fluorescence analysis in ancient ceramics, and the other studied ancient ceramic XRD.

The research focus of these two directions was first the glaze surface, and second, crystal phase formation. Finding them for this type of problem was perfectly appropriate. Professor Liu took the Brush Washer into his hands, and Professor Yu took out a Flashlight and a Magnifying Glass.

As soon as the light hit it, both of them frowned: this glaze color was indeed a bit strange.

There aren't many Ru Porcelain pieces handed down, but that only refers to the collection and antique circles, not the research circle.

Just the broken Ru Porcelain unearthed from Baofeng Qingliang Mountain (Northern Song Official Kiln) amounts to 140,000 pieces. Among them, Sky Blue Glaze accounts for the majority, nearly 90,000 pieces. The secondary Bean Green Glaze and Grey-Green Glaze account for over 50,000 pieces.

With no shortage of materials, the research was naturally deep. At least several professors knew what characteristics Ru Porcelain had:

The Sky Blue Glaze is light and bright, with a very obvious transition in color scales: where the glaze is thin, it shows a pinkish-green, and where it is thick, it presents a sky blue. The reflective texture is similar to the oily luster of Hetian Jade. The tactile sensation is even more distinct: warm and moist like solidified grease, and it reveals a cloud-like mist when breathed upon.

And whether it is true Ru, or imitations from the Ming and Qing periods, they all have these characteristics.

But this piece is not: the glaze color is slightly deep, nearly like bean green, the tone in the transition area is monotonous without layers, and it presents a glass-like reflective texture under 45-degree side lighting. It feels very smooth to the touch, and if you breathe on it, it disappears in the blink of an eye. Never mind cloud-like mist, there isn't even a trace of water vapor at all. What's even stranger is the crackle: for all Ru porcelain, whether genuine or imitation, the crackle is extremely deep, reaching the middle of the glaze layer. But this piece in hand feels like it only has a thin layer on the surface.

After looking it over inside and out several times, the two experts looked at each other and handed the Brush Washer to Director Chen: "Old Chen, why don't you take a look?"

Director Chen took it into his hands: "The clay body is too sticky, it's over-glutinous!"

"The glaze color is too warm, not like the cold tone of Ru porcelain. The green is too deep, closer to gray-green rather than sky blue... and there's one more thing..." Director Chen took the Magnifying Glass, "Look at the crack lines, whether it's imitation or genuine Ru, the crack lines are light gold. But this color is extremely deep, with red appearing within the gold..."

Director Chen frowned: "It feels like the glaze formulation process wasn't mastered completely, and it wasn't imitated well?"

As he said this, the others nodded along.

Lin Sicheng wanted to give a thumbs up: Experts are indeed experts, hitting the nail on the head and going straight to the essence.

He stated the answer directly: "Teachers, the glaze formulation for these pieces did not use Agate!"

A group of experts were all stunned: If Ru porcelain doesn't use Agate in the glaze, what do you call Ru porcelain?

Even if it's an imitation, it won't do.

Director Chen picked up the Magnifying Glass and turned on the High-intensity Flashlight: "If Agate isn't used, how can it present a glaze base close to sky blue?" "It's very simple, use color system neutralization..."

Lin Sicheng scrolled the mouse, and several porcelain shards appeared on the screen.

This was the piece Chen Weihua smashed in a fit of anger, which was later bought back by Lin Sicheng at a high price.

It had already been used as Artifact Research Consumables and was completely consumed by Director Lu, so it couldn't be brought over even if they wanted to.

The image was magnified again, and the interlayer of the glaze surface could be clearly seen: the outermost layer was green glaze, with two layers pressed underneath: one layer of gold, one layer of red. "Double-Color Glaze, Stacking Gold... isn't this the Red Painting of Cizhou Kiln and Dingzhou Kiln?"

Director Chen looked astonished, "But why formulate the glaze like this? If one can afford to imitate Ru porcelain, are they short of Agate?"

This remark was full of humor, but no one laughed; it was truly too bizarre, and they couldn't be bothered.

In ancient times, those who could imitate Ru ware must have been Official Kilns. Folk Kilns wouldn't dare to imitate it even if they wanted to: this type must have been Tribute Porcelain for imperial use.

Ancient Agate was quite expensive, but it certainly wouldn't be so scarce as to cut corners on imperial ware.

Therefore, the experts were exceptionally puzzled.

Suddenly, a voice came out of the blue: "Could it be a foreign imitation?"

The experts all turned their heads in unison.

Oh, Deputy Director Ma?

Compared to the experts present, Deputy Director Ma was definitely a layman: because he specialized in the protection and research of metal Cultural Relics.

However, why did what he said make so much sense?

If it were a domestic imitation, it could only be an Official Kiln imitation, and it would certainly be imitated as closely as possible. It would never omit the most critical process of "Agate in the glaze."

No one would dare to do so, and Folk Kilns would dare even less; they wouldn't even dare to imitate it at all: did they not want the lives of their nine generations?

But if it were a foreign imitation, then everything could be explained: the most difficult process in imitating Ru porcelain is Agate in the glaze.

With the technological level of foreign countries during the same period, there was no way to make the refractive index of the Agate crystals in the glaze approach the refractive index of air, thereby achieving the glaze effect of "transparent but not exposed" and "green changing with light."

Nor could they make the expansion coefficient of the Agate crystals produce thermal expansion and contraction cracks with the glaze matrix to form the natural crackle of cicada wings and fish scales.

Therefore, even with a complete formula, it would be useless.

In the end, they could only settle for the next best thing and use this incongruous method to fool themselves...

The group of experts suddenly realized, staring at Deputy Director Ma.

Deputy Director Ma remained calm: Why are you looking at me, thinking I don't understand porcelain, yet I said something so reasonable?

I don't understand, but I understand Lin Sicheng: if it had nothing to do with today's verification, why would he take these Brush Washers?

It seems highly likely that it is strongly related to the batch detained by Customs; nine times out of ten, it is the same type of thing.

Director Lu and Lin Sicheng had said more than once that those were foreign imitations, so what about these few pieces?

Deputy Director Ma didn't speak, and the experts didn't have the energy to get to the bottom of it, so their attention was focused back on the few Brush Washers.

"Where was it imitated, Joseon?" Director Chen recalled carefully, "In the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, during the Chongzhen and Shunzhi periods, it seems only Joseon had this ability?" "If Agate isn't used in the glaze, Vietnam could also imitate it!" Professor Yu frowned, "Japan, it seems they could also imitate it?"

"Japan, Gold-Decorated Glaze... oh, they really could imitate it: the Gold-Decorated Style of Arita Ware?"

After a pause, Director Chen's eyes lit up, "Sakaida Kakiemon?"

At first, some people felt strange: why must it be Sakaida Kakiemon?

But after a little thought, all the experts reacted:

The Gold-Decorated Style is the same as the Gold-Decorated Glaze; in China during the same period, slightly larger Folk Kilns could do it. But in Japan during the same period, it was the unique skill and secret technique of the largest porcelain kiln, Arita Ware.

The founder of Arita Ware was Sakaida Kakiemon, who happened to become famous in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. If not him, who else could it be?

"Swish," everyone's eyes lit up: The ancestor of Japanese porcelain?

Lin Sicheng nodded: "Whether it came from the hands of Sakaida Kakiemon still needs verification. But at least it can be proven: it was indeed fired in Arita Town, Saka Prefecture, Japan, during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties..."

The group of experts remained silent.

Doing research is not like doing appraisal, where you can talk in circles; you have to provide data: one is one, two is two, even a one percent difference won't do. But this is not an Academic Report, and the experts have their own judgment: the instruments in the Forbidden City are not just for show, right?

They can analyze the composition, analyze the formula, and even trace the origin of the clay and glaze raw materials. If Lin Sicheng says it's Arita Ware, then it is absolutely Arita Ware. In Japan during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, besides the founder of Arita Ware, Sakaida Kakiemon, who else would use Gold-Decorated Glaze?

This thing is definitely a Japanese national treasure.

The key is that there is not just one piece: there are four pieces placed on the long table in front of them.

Four Japanese national treasures?

Just as they were astonished, Lin Sicheng clicked the mouse again, leaving only the Blue and White Bowl on the screen.

The bottom foot looked like red brick, and the glaze on the bowl was streaked with black and gray.

Without needing an expert, even an ordinary person could see it: this is a failed Blue and White Bowl.

It's not that no one thought about it: what is the meaning of placing a piece of waste porcelain among a pile of Japanese national treasures worth millions?

But more people were guessing: Lin Sicheng wouldn't shoot without a target; if things go wrong, this bowl might be the key.

Sure enough?

Lin Sicheng magnified the image: "This piece was given to me by Hu Hai after I bought the Brush Washers. Let me state the conclusion first: it is the same as the first Brush Washer, the same composition, the same origin of raw materials, which is Blue and White Porcelain imitated by Japan..."

"Secondly, compared to the Brush Washer, this Bowl has four differences: First, it was a failed firing."

"Second, the body and glaze use a Unit Formula, meaning it only has Porcelain Stone, and no porcelain clay."

"Third, it has a mark. Fourth, the date is slightly earlier!"

A failed firing is easy to understand; anyone with eyes can see it. The Unit Formula is even easier to understand: Japan has no porcelain clay, only Porcelain Stone.

But what do "slightly earlier" and "has a mark" mean?

While suspicious, Lin Sicheng zoomed in on the photo.

Vaguely, one could see a small character carved into the bottom of the Bowl.

It looked like a... Rain character?

Hiss... seems like I've seen it somewhere?

After a brief moment of recollection, a flash of light crossed his mind. Instantly, Director Chen's heart could not stop pounding.

It was as if his brain had been electrocuted, his scalp feeling numb and wooden.

"Red Painting... Gold-Decorated Style... Rain Mark..."

Professor Yu was confused: "Old Chen, what are you muttering about?"

"Old Yu, before Sakaida Kakiemon founded Arita Ware, did anyone in Japan fire porcelain?"

Of course there was.

The craft of the porcelain ancestor was learned, not dropped from the sky.

Muttering to himself, Professor Yu suddenly froze: "Li Canping?"

"It is Li Canping!"

Director Chen gritted his teeth: "The Tokyo National Museum has a Red-Painted Five-Color Plate that uses what Japan calls the Gold-Decorated Style, and the bottom of the plate has a 'Rain' mark... This is Li Canping's unique mark..."

Rain mark, Li Canping?

In the large conference hall, there was suddenly no sound.

They were not Zhao Xiuneng; their appraisal skills were high, and their Artifact Restoration skills were even higher, but they did not study history much.

They were Experts, and historical knowledge was just a basic skill.

Although it was foreign history, Li Canping's reputation was too loud and his status high enough: he was a figure who had a separate biography recorded in the national history of Japan.

The founding ancestor of the Japanese porcelain industry.

More crucially, this was not the previous Brush Washer: you knew it was a relic of the Japanese porcelain ancestor Sakaida Kakiemon, yet you lacked the most critical evidence.

But this piece was different: that "Rain" mark on the bottom of the Bowl was ironclad proof.

Even in Japan, there are no more than three pieces of porcelain that can be definitively confirmed as fired by Li Canping himself. But now, there was actually one sitting right in front of them? Subconsciously, many Experts' eyes lit up: No wonder this Bowl was fired so poorly and the craftsmanship was so crude?

Precisely because it was poor, it just happened to show: this was a trial piece attempted at the very beginning when Li Canping pioneered porcelain firing in Japan.

Which meant, the first piece of porcelain in Japanese history... then how important must the significance of this Bowl be to Japan?

That Red-Painted Five-Color Plate Director Chen mentioned wasn't even fit to carry the shoes of this Blue and White Bowl...

But not all Experts were so excited.

For example, Director Chen, for example, Professor Yu, Professor Liu, and Dean Ding.

The four of them exchanged glances, a trace of suspicion flashing in their eyes:

How is this Bowl somewhat similar to those photos of Blue and White Porcelain that Lin Sicheng released when he first went up?

Just then, Lin Sicheng had specifically instructed: Teacher, these sets of photos need to be submitted, they will be used later...

But that was only secondary; more crucially: why did it feel somewhat similar to those pieces seized by Customs?

Gradually, the expressions of the several Experts became uglier and uglier, uglier and uglier...

Damn it, wouldn't it be better to honestly stay at the unit doing Artifact Research, why did they have to come and wade into these muddy waters?

Now it's a fine mess: their faces have been pressed into the ground...