A large blue and sancai appliqué-decorated tripod incense burner, Tang dynasty 唐 三彩加藍貼花獅弦紋三足爐

In the 289 years of Tang dynastic rule (618–907), the most successful and sought-after pieces were sancai ware, literally 'three-colour ware', creating a colour scheme that eventually became a staple for Chinese ceramics and remained popular long after many additional glaze colours had become available.

In the 8th century, the palette was dramatically enriched by introducing a deep cobalt blue, a rare and valuable pigment introduced to China from West Asia. The brilliant blue colour was quickly used in ceramics, both in single-colour glazes and as an addition to the three-colour glazes of the Tang dynasty.

See a related incense burner without the blue glaze from the Herzman Collection and now preserved in the Metropolitan Museum (accession Number: 1991.253.5).

大唐文藝蓬勃，彼時陶匠皆務求創新，工藝越見奇巧，色系更趨豐富。三彩陶器彩色清麗怡人，濃淡斑駁，尤顯變幻之美，成為中國陶瓷一大品種，即使後世創新色釉品種不斷，卻仍可獨占一席，流傳千載而不衰。三彩器中以施藍彩者最受推崇，藍彩始用於唐代約八世紀，其時鈷料極純，需從中東進口，珍貴無比。可參考赫茨曼伉儷藏一相類例，後捐贈於紐約大都會博物館，館藏編號：1991.253.5。