Clay meets civilization in China’s Jingdezhen

What the report says

The Independent Uganda, publishing a Xinhua report from Nanchang, reported that UNESCO has added China’s Jingdezhen Handicraft Porcelain Industry Sites to the World Heritage List. The decision was made on Saturday during the 48th session of the World Heritage Committee in Busan, South Korea, and raises China’s listed World Heritage sites to 61.

Jingdezhen, in east China’s Jiangxi Province, is described in the report as a long-standing centre of Chinese ceramic culture, with more than two millennia of kiln history. The article highlights Taoyangli, a historic riverside area, and notes that porcelain production in Jingdezhen has traditionally involved highly specialised skills, including clay forming, glazing, painting and firing. It also profiles artisan Sun Lixin, a provincial-level inheritor of blue-and-white porcelain-making techniques whose family brand spans more than a century.

The report places the UNESCO recognition within a broader discussion of cultural preservation and exchange. It recalls Chinese President Xi Jinping’s October 2023 visit to Jingdezhen, where he toured kiln sites, a museum and Ming- and Qing-era kiln clusters, and urged stronger innovation, design and research in the ceramics sector. The article also cites Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Institute head Weng Yanjun, who linked the city’s ceramics to both Chinese cultural identity and historical contact with other regions.

According to the report, Jingdezhen remains active in international ceramic exchange, attracting foreign students, artists and scholars. It hosted the Congress of the International Academy of Ceramics from late June to early July 2026, drawing more than 400 international ceramic artists under the theme “Inheritance and Innovation.”