Porcelain is one of China's great inventions, born from the interplay of fire and earth. During the Song Dynasty (960-1279), it reached a new level of maturity. Across a vast landscape, kilns multiplied, each taking on a distinctive local hue. What survives is more than beautiful objects. These porcelain items preserve the ideal of living with elegance and control, an aesthetic that has traveled across centuries and continues to shape the cultural imagination of the world today.