Yaoli Village and Raonan Outdoor Ceramics Museum

Yaoli Ancient Village (瑶里古镇) is a fairly well-known tourist destination located about 1 1/2 hours by car from Jingdezhen.

During the past few years I have visited the village a handful of times, and each time I’m even more disappointed by the continuous development, poor management, and flocks of tourists.

But the countryside around Yaoli is beautiful.  If you continue driving past the ancient village you will find numerous small villages with restaurants offering local cuisine.  Drive up the mountain and you should come across wonderful views of the valleys as well as waterfalls.

A village near Yaoli

An ancient bridge in the countryside near Yaoli

One of the waterfalls to be found in the mountains

Yaoli is also the home of a type of porcelain stone known as “glaze stone”.  This stone is a major component of traditional Jingdezhen glazes.

There is a very nice outdoor museum in Yaoli called Raonan (绕南陶瓷主题园区) which runs along a small river.  The river powers hammer mills that continuously crush Yaoli porcelain stone.  There are also ancient dragon kilns and even pottery wheels where you can try throwing Jingdezhen porcelain.

The river running through the Raonan ceramics museum

A water wheel powers large hammer mills used for crushing porcelain stone

A water wheel powers large hammer mills used for crushing porcelain stone

The crushed stone powder is washed, mixed, and dried in large pits.

The porcelain paste is formed into bricks and air-dried."

One of the remaining dragon kiln ruins. Chambers can be seen at the bottom of the kiln.

Another dragon kiln at the Yaoli site.

Large piles of waste saggars and shards surround the kiln sites.