Yixing Ceramics Museum

The Yixing Ceramics Museum stands on Dingshan North Road in Dingshu Town, the heart of China's famed zisha, or purple clay, teapot industry in Jiangsu Province. The museum presents the long history of Yixing pottery, from early Neolithic and Bronze Age wares excavated in the region to the refined teapots that made the town world-famous from the Ming dynasty onward. Galleries display teapots by named masters, kiln tools, clay samples and models of the dragon kilns that still shape the local landscape. Visitors can see how raw clay is mined, aged, shaped and fired, and compare the colours of zisha varieties, from reddish-brown to deep purple. Labels and displays help make sense of teapot forms, such as the ribbed, melon-shaped and bamboo-section designs, and explain why unglazed clay is prized for brewing tea. A visit takes about one and a half to two hours, and a weekday morning is the quietest time to go. Photography is usually allowed in the galleries but flash is best avoided. Crowds build on weekends and holidays when tour groups arrive, though the museum rarely feels packed. The museum is a useful first stop before exploring the workshops and galleries on Shushan Ancient South Street, because it gives visitors the vocabulary to judge quality and price of the teapots on sale. It is reported free with ID, so travellers should bring a passport, but entry rules and opening hours should be confirmed on the museum's WeChat page. The museum is normally closed on Mondays.