Most painted ceramics in the past were therefore made by another method, in which a coat of white glaze was first applied to the semi-finished article, producing a glossy, impermeable surface on which a craftsman could copy out intricate designs. These designs typically featured auspicious imagery of dragons and phoenixes, or colorful bats, birds and flowers, all rendered in the detailed, realist style of traditional Chinese gongbi brushwork.
所以歷代留下陶瓷，大多以「釉上彩」的方式製作，就是在生坯上塗上一層白釉，讓表面光滑不滲水，這樣就很方便工匠比對繁複的畫稿，以工筆在杯碗瓶罐上畫滿龍鳳或是蝙蝠花鳥等五彩吉祥圖案。