Eggshell porcelain, also called "Baotai" porcelain in Chinese, is a traditional ceramic art from the Jingdezhen kilns in southern China's Jiangxi province. As the name hints, they are thin and fragile, and require plenty of skill to produce. We meet an artisan who dedicated his life to studying the craft.

In a workshop in Jingdezhen- the "Porcelain Capital" of China, and the birthplace of eggshell porcelain, Lu Jiande is working on his latest creation. He's making a thin bowl, the walls of which are just half a millimeter. Placed under a lamp, the shape of a flower inside the bowl can be easily seen through the light. Lu is responsible for the only piece of eggshell porcelain that's been sold at Christie's.

LU JIANDE ARTISAN "Honestly speaking, there are only three or four qualified eggshell porcelains in our hundreds of products. This is because it is really difficult to make something this thin. It can only be made by hand and it requires proficient skills and great patience during the production process."

These thin artifacts are completely hand made through a process of 72 steps. The porcelains begin with their clay being pulled to just 2 to 5 millimeters. Lu has been studying the skill for four decades.

LU JIANDE ARTISAN "In the beginning, we have to work 16 to 18 hours a day. We didn't want this traditional handicraft to be lost. So we practiced hard and made thousands of trials over the past decades."

Now Lu is making a polygonal bowl. He says eggshell porcelain of this type only existed in ancient books, no one knew how to make it. 25 years ago, Lu decided to bring this ancient craft back to reality. He says the most difficult step is firing. The temperature inside the kiln can reach as high as 1,350 degrees celsius and the bowls can crack easily.

LU JIANDE ARTISAN "Sometimes I have to wait all night. I expected a miracle could happen. Even though I have met constant failures."

Besides polygonal bowls, Lu also challenged himself by making large diameter bowls. In 1994, he scooped up the Guinness world record for completing a bowl 88 centimeters wide. And he is still moving forward, trying to break his own record. And his son, Lu Tian, is following in his footsteps.

LU TIAN ARTISAN "For nearly a month, he produced a lot of bowls, but they all eventually cracked. I gradually lost my patience and tried to persuade my father to give up. But he seemed like nothing was wrong, and kept trying. And it was at that time, I decided to follow him and took up his work."

Lu Jiande is 58 years old, but he says he will never give up his work. He says he's willing to share his experience to anyone who wants learn this traditional handicraft.