Synopsis
In Jingdezhen, a legendary vase becomes an inheritance, a source of political leverage, and a promise of rescue for a declining family. Its story draws together craftsmen, officials, merchants, missionaries, and foreign diplomats.
Spanning the late Southern Song to the twilight of the Qing and the Boxer Rebellion era, Hong Sheng's historical novel combines family secrets, dark humour, and the material world of porcelain. It asks how beauty survives a civilization's fractures, and whether broken fragments can become the beginning of something new.