A Full Guide to Antique Chinese Peach Bloom Glazes
Copper-based peach bloom glazes were notoriously finicky in the kiln. Small variations in oxygen levels and single-digit temperature differences created wildly varying results. Even pieces fired next to one another can come out with different colors and patterns.
A lush pinkish red is the ideal color, but inconsistencies lead to light green, brown, grey. Dark pink, maroon and cherry red were also prized.
Peach bloom glaze was created in the late 1600s during the Kangxi emperor’s reign and under his encouragement for new glaze experimentation. Here are nine pieces from the time of Kangxi’s reign (1661-1722) showing some of the varying colors and patterns.
The last piece above, the dish, is a rarer use of peach bloom glaze on tableware. All the other pieces here are desk objects, or as they’re referred to in China “scholar’s” objects. Originally popular among the literati classes and those studying for imperial examinations, scholar’s objects eventually became the mark of a cultured person, and popular as status symbols.
Like this late Qing soapstone carving, many scholar’s objects were prized for their complex, intricate—yet still natural—shapes and patterns. Peach bloom glazes quickly became one of the most popular finishes for ceramic scholar’s objects, thanks to this visual interest of natural streaks and spots of varying colors.
