In 1928, the National Research Institute of Engineering of the Academia Sinica (中央研究院工程研究所Zhongyang Yanjiuyuan Gongcheng Yanjiusuo) was established. Under the leadership of its director, Chow Jen (周仁), ceramics was on the top of its planned research list. The aim was to try an industrial laboratory model that combined laboratories and experimental workshops, and use scientific methods to improve China's experience-based porcelain making tradition. Based on new historical materials, this paper analyzes the research concepts and methods of the Institute's work, including their investigation of the excavation and production process summary of the Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln (官窑), investigation and analysis of the raw materials of ceramic clay in China, and analysis and imitation of ancient ceramic glazes. The study found that the Institute regarded the design of scientific analytical experiments as the basis for ancient ceramics research, including methods such as chemical composition analysis and physical property analysis. Their efforts gave rise to the development of the early practice of scientific and technological methods for Chinese ceramics. Although the Institute did not fulfilled its goal of improving the traditional ceramic industry in its early decade of development, its attempts at physical and chemical research of ancient ceramics brought new methods to traditional Chinese archaeological work and promoted modern archaeometric research of ceramics. These developments made the institute a pioneer in archaeological and technological research on ancient Chinese ceramics.
WANG et al. (Sun,) studied this question.