This shard comprises of the base of a thickly potted Cizhou bowl. It is covered with a coat of iron-black slip, which was then glazed with a clear glaze. It has the remains of firing spurs attached to its base. Firing spurs are small seed-like supports used to stand other pieces on top of a glazed dish for firing, so as to prevent the glaze on the two pieces from sticking.Such whitewares, of which this shard was a part of, are known as Cizhou wares after the kilns in Hebei province of that name that made similar wares. However, the so-called Cizhou wares were made in many kilns in Hebei, Henan and Shaanxi provinces during the Song to Yuan periods. Cizhou wares were popular at this time with domestic markets and were made for daily use rather than as tribute for the court or for scholarly appreciation.
