Dehua-kiln, white-glazed porcelain figure of a seated arhat

Dehua white porcelain craftsmanship flourished during the Ming Dynasty. Over years of experience, artisans honed their mastery of this uniquely soft and highly plastic clay, enabling them to create lifelike sculptures of revered figures from Buddhism, such as Guanyin, Bodhidharma, Buddha, Maitreya, and arhats. According to research into traditional Dehua-kiln techniques, and analysis of specimens excavated from kiln sites, ceramic sculptures from the Ming Dynasty were primarily produced using molding and hand pinching techniques.