Qian Ding 钱定

Quick Facts

Current compiled inheritor lists place Qian Ding among the Jianyang District-level representative inheritors of the Jian Kiln and Jian Zhan firing tradition. For an explanation of Chinese Jianzhan titles and credential levels, see
Jianzhan Titles & Credentials Explained.

Biography

Qian Ding (钱定) was born in May 1981 in Jianyang, Fujian, the historic center of Jian ware production.
According to his official Ruizhantang biography, he became interested in old Jian Zhan circulating in his hometown while still young.

In August 2004, Qian began studying Jian Zhan firing under
Que Meijiao (阙梅娇).
His training began with forming and pressing bodies and progressed through trimming, glazing and firing.
His biography states that after approximately two years he had become familiar with the complete production process and began producing Jian Zhan from a home workshop.

In 2008 he established
Nanping Jianyang District Ruizhantang Jian Zhan Ceramics Co., Ltd.
(南平市建阳区瑞盏堂建盏陶瓷有限公司).
His later work combines traditional Jian ware materials and aesthetics with controlled modern firing technology, glaze experimentation and new vessel forms.

Qian’s documented professional titles include
福建省手工艺大师 (Fujian Province Handicraft Master),
福建省轻工行业技术能手 (Fujian light-industry technical expert),
and 南平市工艺美术师 (Nanping Arts and Crafts Artist).

Lineage & Training

Qian Ding identifies Que Meijiao (阙梅娇) as his principal teacher in Jian Zhan firing.
Que Meijiao is herself recognized within the modern Jian ware tradition and has been documented as a Fujian Province Arts and Crafts Master and a provincial-level representative inheritor.

Qian’s official biography also records his graduation from
Quanzhou Arts and Crafts Vocational College
(泉州工艺美术职业学院).

Ruizhantang 瑞盏堂

Ruizhantang is Qian Ding’s Jian Zhan studio and ceramic company in Jianyang.
Its official materials emphasize iron-rich bodies, mineral-based glazes, natural kiln transformation and strong crystalline development.

Qian’s biography also describes unusual attention to the presentation of his work.
Wooden boxes, labels and seals have been produced using handwritten
Han-slip inspired characters (汉简字), giving the packaging an intentionally archaic visual character.

In 2019, Ruizhantang was among the enterprises approved by China’s National Intellectual Property Administration to use the special geographical-indication mark for
Jian Zhan (建盏).

Qian Ding Dragon Kiln 钱定龍窯

Qian Ding’s printed Ruizhantang material shows him standing in front of a traditional elongated kiln beneath the sign
钱定龍窯, literally “Qian Ding Dragon Kiln.”

His official catalog repeatedly identifies works as
古法龙窑柴烧 (traditional-method dragon-kiln wood firing)
and 龙窑柴烧 (dragon-kiln wood firing).
Wood-fired hare’s fur, oil spot, tea-dust, persimmon-red, partridge-feather and purple-gold pieces are also represented in the catalog.

Learn more about the kiln type on the
Dragon Kiln reference page.

Dark Wood-Fired & Crystalline Work

Dark Jian Zhan associated with Qian Ding and Ruizhantang, showing dense metallic crystalline development over a black ground.

Dark black and near-black surfaces form an important part of Qian Ding’s documented work.
His official biography identifies 黑毫 (black hare’s fur) among the glaze types he developed and names
《柴烧黑毫》 (Wood-Fired Black Hare’s Fur) as a representative work.

Other pieces combine restrained black surfaces with silver, gold or blue-gray crystalline effects that may appear dramatically different under direct light.
This light-sensitive character is particularly visible in collector photographs of his work.

Interior illuminated with a strong light, revealing fine radial crystalline structure that is much less visible under ordinary lighting.

Broad & Landscape-Like Surfaces

Broad open form attributed to Qian Ding / Ruizhantang, with dark blue-black and gold-toned crystalline patterning.

Some Qian Ding pieces encountered on the collector market are described with
山水纹, or “landscape-pattern,” terminology.
This is useful as a visual description of certain broad, dark surfaces, but it should not automatically be treated as the formal name of one specific Qian Ding glaze series.

Documented Glazes & Series

Ruizhantang’s biography and surviving official catalog index document a broad range of Qian Ding glaze families and firing styles.

Representative & Named Works

• 《柴烧黑毫》 — Wood-Fired Black Hare’s Fur
• 《木兰甲》 — Mulan Jia / “Mulan Armor”
• 《觅红颜》 — Mi Hongyan / “Seeking Beauty”
• 《夜雪油滴》 — Night-Snow Oil Spot
• 《瑞雨》 — Rui Yu / “Auspicious Rain”
• 《红颜知己》 — Hongyan Zhiji
• 《柴烧墨尊黑毫》 — Wood-Fired Mozun Black Hare’s Fur
• 《黑底银油滴》 — Silver Oil Spots on a Black Ground

Technical Research & Patent

Qian Ding’s practice is not limited to traditional wood firing.
His technical work also documents controlled electric-kiln firing and glaze development.

In 2022, Qian Ding was named as the inventor on Chinese patent application
CN115385659A,
彩毫建盏的制备工艺,
a preparation and firing process for colored hare’s-fur Jian Zhan.
The assignee is Nanping Jianyang Ruizhantang Jian Zhan Ceramics Co., Ltd.

The patent documents an electric-kiln process reaching approximately
1330°C.
Oil-rich firewood is introduced during controlled stages of the firing and reduction process.
The body uses red clay and kaolin from Shuiji, Jianyang, while the glaze stone is identified as coming from Nanlin Village.
Other glaze ingredients include plant ash, potash feldspar, limestone and iron oxide.

Qian Ding also authored
《建盏烧制技艺探讨与实践》
(“Discussion and Practice of Jian Zhan Firing Techniques”),
published in Jiangsu Ceramics (江苏陶瓷), 2023, Vol. 56, No. 4, pp. 34–35.

Marks & Signatures

Collector photographs associated with Qian Ding and Ruizhantang show more than one foot-marking format.
A Qian Ding piece should therefore not be rejected solely because its mark differs from another known example.

Elaborate impressed foot mark associated with a Qian Ding / Ruizhantang piece.
The central seal is highly stylized and should not be over-interpreted from a single photograph.

Simpler two-character maker mark associated with Qian Ding.

Selected Awards

• 《红颜知己》 —
  Gold Award, 8th Fujian Ceramic Art and Design Innovation Competition
• 《木兰甲》 —
  Gold Award, 7th Cross-Strait “Fudiao Award”
• 《瑞雨》 —
  Gold Award, 4th Fujian “Minyi Cup” ceramic creative-design competition
• 《柴烧墨尊黑毫》 —
  Gold Award, 2nd Fujian Craftsman Award
• 《黑底银油滴》 —
  Bronze Award, 11th Fujian Arts & Crafts “Zhengyan Cup,” 2021

The 2021 Zhengyan Cup result is independently recorded by Fujian Daily, which lists
Qian Ding (钱定), entry H093, 《黑底银油滴》 among the Jian Zhan bronze-award recipients.

Museum & Institutional Collections

Ruizhantang’s official biography records Qian Ding’s work entering several museum and institutional collections.

• China Fujian-Taiwan Kinship Museum —
  《瑞雨彩金银毫撇口》, 2020
• Nanping Museum —
  《现代建窑银兔毫瓷盏》, 2020
• Jianyang No. 1 Middle School Jian Zhan Theme Museum —
  Partridge-feather Jian Zhan, 2020
• Zhejiang Tianmushan National Nature Reserve Administration —
  silver oil-spot work
• Chanyuan Temple, West Tianmu Mountain, Lin’an —
  partridge-feather work
• Jianyang District Museum, Nanping

Geographical Indication & Quality Testing

Ruizhantang appears in the China National Intellectual Property Administration records among enterprises approved to use the
Jian Zhan geographical-indication special mark.

Ruizhantang products have also appeared in Fujian provincial product-quality supervision testing.
In the 2022 provincial inspection, a Ruizhantang
官帽盏 (guanmao-form Jian Zhan) was listed as compliant.
The wider inspection examined water absorption, thermal-shock resistance, lead migration and cadmium migration.

A later provincial inspection also listed a Ruizhantang
兔毫 (hare’s-fur) Jian Zhan as compliant.

Ruizhantang Booklet

Printed Ruizhantang material preserved by collectors provides a Chinese-language biography, titles, representative works, awards and institutional collections for Qian Ding.
These pages are particularly valuable because they preserve the original Chinese terminology rather than relying on simplified English seller translations.

Original Chinese biography page.

Ruizhantang honors and collections page.

Collector Notes

• Look for the names 钱定 and 瑞盏堂 on marks, packaging, certificates and printed material.
• Qian Ding’s work includes both dragon-kiln wood-fired and electric-kiln Jian Zhan.
• Dark black hare’s-fur, silver crystalline effects and restrained wood-fired surfaces are important parts of his work, but they are not his only styles.
• Strong direct lighting can reveal crystalline structures that are nearly invisible under ordinary room lighting.
• More than one foot-marking format is documented in collector photographs.
• Boxes and certificates can support provenance, but neither should be treated as authentication by itself.
• Marketplace descriptions such as “landscape pattern” may be useful visual terminology without necessarily representing an official Ruizhantang series name.

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