Man teaches himself ancient porcelain restoration

Zheng Weiguo works in his studio in Longquan, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/VCG]

Zheng Weiguo, 46, lives in Longquan, East China's Zhejiang province. His hobby is collecting celadon porcelain, but most pieces he found were broken or incomplete. So he decided to learn how to restore ancient porcelain.

Each procedure in restoration work requires precision and tests skill and patience. When facing difficulties, Zheng would ask for the experts' help, read relevant documents, or go to an excavation site to learn about firing skills.

Zheng said that when doing the job, he would incorporate his mind into the porcelains and try to follow the art works' original feelings. "It's just like when people fall in love, you should learn to know and understand your lover," he said.

The secret color ware is regarded as the finest result during the peak development of China's famous Yue kiln. For thousands of years, it has only existed in people's imaginations, both for the lack of historical records and the small quantity of such items that survive today.