Firing up an ancient art

Japanese craftsman re-creates a rare style of Song Dynasty porcelain that has been long lost in China. Cai Hong reports in Tokyo.

In 2007, the Japanese ceramic artist Kyosuke Hayashi brought his reproduction of rare chinaware to Beijing for an exhibition. His Chinese counterparts greatly admired the replica but were also a little bit embarrassed as no one in the country could re-create it.

The rare piece Hayashi reproduced is jian zhan, which literally means tea bowls fired in kilns. The craft originated in Southeast China's Fujian province during the Song Dynasty (960-1279).