景泰蓝 Jing Tai Lan

工匠们先把这种细长扁平的铜丝弯曲掐制成各种复杂的形状和山水花鸟等各种图案，再一个一个粘到铜胎上。
Craftsmen first weld thin and flat wires into all kinds of complex shapes and patterns, such as mountains, rivers, flowers and birds, and then paste them onto the copper mold one by one.

这样一个简单的花瓶就需要500米的铜丝。
Such a plain vase needs 500-meter-long copper wires.

至于景泰蓝上绚丽丰富的色彩，就是这样用颜料在铜丝弯成的小格子中。
The brilliant colors on Jing Tai Lan are inlayed into the empty spaces formed by copper wires like this.

一小块一小块堆填出来的，这个关键的环节叫做“点蓝”。
This key step is called “coloring blue”.

决定景泰蓝颜色的还有“烧蓝”。
Another key step which is critical to the colors of Jing Tai Lan is enamel-firing.

烧蓝的炉温一般在600度以上。
Temperature for enamel-firing is usually above 600 centigrade.

火候或温度上的丝毫偏差，都可能造成颜色偏差或釉质脱落而前功尽弃。
Any mistake in temperature will cause wrong colors or sheds of glaze which lead to failure.

进炉一烧颜料的体积就会缩小。
After burning, the size of the colors will shrink.

因此“点蓝”和“烧蓝”的环节需要重复许多次。
Therefore, steps of enamel-coloring and enamel-firing must be repeated several times.