The so called Guyuexuan refers to the handicraft articles in Qing Dynasty which dated back from 1644 to 1911. The articles dated back to the reign period of Kangxi in Qing Dynasty. The handicraft articles are painted with enamel on the surface of glass. Then the articles are heated in a kiln. Because of the difficult techniques of the heating machines, people seldom made articles with big size. The small-sized appliance like snuff bottle and astray were made in the royal kiln. The articles were fancy and only appeared in the royal palace.
The making of the articles requires high standard heating demand for the temperature of the glazing color is same to the melting point of the material body. The strict demand of the heating requires the artists to master the temperature of the kiln and the thickness of the material body. One piece of the Guyuexuan articles will be completed after the coloring for several times and the decoration firing for many times. If the makers are careless, the articles will be ruined and the efforts of the artists will be wasted. The elaboration of the articles attracted many overseas visitors who took online Chinese lessons and traveled in China to buy the articles as souvenirs. They said they were all impressed by the delicate handicraft and all wanted to buy one to give their friends and relatives. It is believed that the foreigners are very interested in the dedicated work of the articles.
The surface of the articles is charming with the unique pictures on it and the excellent techniques. The poems written on the articles add the glamour of the articles, which increased the appreciation of the articles. The word Guyuexuan will also be written on the articles as well as the exact firing dates. The handicraft articles which combine the poetry, script and the painting are considered as a master piece of the handicraft art. The articles receive much admiration and appreciation from ancient time till now.
Those who learn Chinese may know that the origin of the name Guyuexuan has three explanations. The first one is that the emperor Qianlong in Qing Dynasty had a pavilion whose name was Guyue Pavilion. The second one is that Guyuexuan was made by a craftsman who created delicate articles. The third one is that the name was created by the imagination of the merchants and there were no such articles.