Blue-and-white porcelain is one of the treasures of Chinese ceramics. The blue-and-white porcelain uses a cobalt oxide containing cobalt oxide as a raw material to delineate the decoration on the ceramic body, and then it is covered with a transparent glaze and fired at a high temperature to reduce the flame.
The cobalt material displays color blue after firing, and has the characteristics of strong coloring, bright color, high firing rate, and stable coloration. The origin of blue-and-white porcelain originated from the Tang Dynasty of China and reached the peak of development during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
At the same time, blue-and-white porcelain was also introduced to Portugal, where it sprouted and combined with Portuguese traditional tile paintings to create a new art form. This article tries to outline the features of Portuguese azulejos via its historical origins and cultural values and compare it with Chinese blue-and-white porcelain.
Further research into ceramic cultural exchange between these two places is meaningful and very much needed as it can open new horizons and as yet unexplored areas.