We have noted previously that the decoration of Oriental porcelain is largely bound up in mythology, nay, more, it is largely connected with religion. The religions of China must therefore receive some attention from those who would really understand the beauty of the decorations used by the Chinese. China possesses three principal religions, of which two are national—Confucianism and Taoism—one imported from India—Buddhism. Although Confucianism may be said to be the official religion of the Court, of the functionaries, and of the learned, it is not a religion in the sense which we attach to the word. Confucius was the reformer of the ancient national religion, which was really fetishism. It is a code of practical morality based upon the duties and obligations of mankind, and respect for both ancestors and antiquity. Idols such as images of gods and spirits are put on one side. Confucius recognised implicitly the existence of a God creator of the world—Chang-ti, the Emperor Supreme, or Thien, the Heaven; the Emperor alone as "Son of Heaven" was, as it were, the priest, acting in the name of all his people, addressing to the Creator of the world prayers and thanksgivings, at the winter and summer solstices and at the spring equinox.

Not alone does the God of Heaven partake of these ceremonies in the Imperial worship, but the goddesses of the earth, and the various genii of the waters, of the mountains, and stars, and the Imperial ancestors. No images are made of these, and they are only represented on the altars by tablets on which are their names. Confucianism orders respect and veneration for ancestors, who ought to be cherished and treated as if they were living, so that the ancestral worship was an incessant witness of gratitude and thanks, which has become the only real religion of the followers of Confucius in China.

Confucius was born in 551 B.C. After his death the gratitude of the sovereigns and the admiration of the peoples gave him a rank almost divine. Every city built temples to him, not as a god whom they worshipped, but as a man whom they venerated as a benefactor, and as the master respected by the nation as a great saint in civil life. There are not to be found many images or pictures on Oriental porcelain of Confucius or his followers, for the reason stated that Confucius simply settled a system of morality.

Taoism.

Taoism differs from the doctrines of Confucius in that it is a gross religion made of superstitious local beliefs in fetishes and demons curiously amalgamated with the higher metaphysical doctrines of the philosopher Lao-tseu, who was born 604 B.C. He included nearly all of the old Chinese religions, which Confucius had reformed by taking away its superstitions. This he did in order to fight more advantageously against the reforms of Confucius. In reality, this religion agrees with others; we may say that all the doctrines of all the religions make a great difference between the beliefs of the common people and those of philosophers and of learned men, for in the higher sense the doctrines of Lao-tseu and his eminent disciples were able to be maintained without danger of comparison against those of Confucius or the most illustrious thinkers of ancient India. Taoism in its popular form recognised a supreme God creator of the world, similarly named to the God recognised by Confucianism, Thien, Heaven, or Tien-kong, God of Heaven, but above him he places a Trinity called the "Three Pures," really the "Three Pure Ones," of whom Lao-tseu was one, representing the spirit of knowledge or of wisdom. Below this Trinity is found a multitude of gods, genii, demons, spirits of Heaven, of the earth, of the sea, of the waters, of the mountains, of the rivers, of the provinces, of the cities, of the villages, &c., all designated under the collective name of Chens, "spirits." For the most part these are ancient heroes, literary men or philosophers deified; hence the gods, such as the eight immortals, are often found as images, or used as decorations, upon vases and other pieces of Oriental porcelain. We give two figures as illustrations.

Buddhism.

The earliest history of Buddha is an account of his death written in the Pali language, four centuries B.C. Neither this, nor any of the other histories ranging through the ages to our own times is an authentic story of his life and work—it is simply a legend more or less embellished. The mythology is as follows: Gautama, named SiddhÂrtha, the highly gifted son of a ThÂkur, or noble of the Rajput tribe, quitted his father's house in order to meditate upon the evil in the world—upon its origin and its extirpation. He went to ask the advice of two Brahmins who were renowned for their piety, but they were unable to satisfy his yearnings for a higher life. He rested, it is true, faithful to their doctrines—the fundamental truths which they taught—transmigration of souls with a final emancipation, but he saw that their asceticism led only to the enfeebling of the higher powers of the mind, so he decided to find some place where he might find peace in meditation. After a long period spent in reflection, he decided to quit his refuge and preach his faith. He found in Benares, in the "Woods of the Gazelles," his first disciples, and accompanied by them he journeyed through Western Bengal, during forty-five years, honoured by princes, loved by the people, in whose language he preached, till he died of old age probably about 477 B.C. You will note, later, the mille cerfs decoration of Chinese porcelain made in remembrance of this beginning of Buddhism.

Buddha taught four truths. First, of evil. Birth, sickness, and death produce pain, so does the separation from those we love and the desire to secure what we cannot obtain. These joined to the knowledge of existence are the causes of evil. Second, of the origin of evil. The influence of the outside world—suggestion from outside—leads to covetousness and all that sensuality brings. Third, of the end of evil. This is only accomplished by the complete suppression of ardent desires—self-abnegation. Fourth, of the method of suppression. Abstention from humiliating and unprofitable self-indulgence in any form on the one side, and the renunciation of any belief in torture which is ruinous and vain as a means of spiritual growth. Every being is subject to evil, nature in each is essentially the same. Gods, demons, men, and animals are only different degrees of existence. Humanity is the best condition, for only man can attain salvation, he only can obtain deliverance. Regeneration operates only after death and is regulated by the actions done during life. The process is secret, and only step by step, higher and higher, does knowledge of truth lead onwards through the path of salvation to the place eternal—the Nirvana. Only in this blessed abode does the soul rest free from the obligation of being born again, of suffering without cessation the miseries of life.

Buddhism flourished in India during many centuries, especially in the third century B.C., when in the reign of king AÇoka, it became missionary, but about 1100 A.D. it was banished from that country and spread through Eastern Asia, where it has at the present time more than four hundred millions of believers. In China there are eighteen principal sects of this religion, so that it is not surprising that the Chinese Buddhists should commemorate upon their porcelain gods, goddesses, and religious ceremonies of various types, especially as it adopted local superstitions and legends, and lent pomp and Éclat to the worship of the dead. Its pliancy and activity are still marvellous.

CHAPTER IV
A SKETCH SHOWING PORCELAIN CLASSED ACCORDING TO THE ORDER OF THE DISCOVERY OF COLOURS AND GLAZES

Our first task will be to classify the porcelain according to the order of its discovery, and in this relation we shall be largely guided by form and colour, which in the oldest pieces is naturally less diversified than in the later. Perhaps the oldest pottery is that improperly called boccaro, owing to its resemblance to the pottery which, in Portugal, bore this name, and as we shall see presently the Portuguese were the first to visit the land of far Cathay. The colours on boccaro ware are very varied—and some imitate bronze. Many coloured enamels cover other pieces with a dense glaze which completely hides the shape or body. These pieces are usually moulded, but examples have been found where the decoration has been cut with a tool in the paste when wet. Other specimens have been carved in the paste after it had been dried in the sun.

The second class in order of age would be white porcelain made of kaolins from different districts, which gave different tints to the white, and unequal densities to the ware, some being heavy and some light. Possibly the light ware of this period gave rise to the idea of soft paste. The white itself varies in tint from a fine creamy glaze, which is very beautiful, called "blanc de chine." Then there is a bluish white called "white of snow," and a plain white called "white of flour." The creamy white is valued very highly by the Chinese themselves, and "Franks" mentions an instance where a Hong Kong merchant, after making many magnificent presents to an English gentleman, gave him as an object of great value a white cup of this kind enclosed in a case lined with silk. This "blanc de chine" was highly esteemed in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, especially in France and Spain. It is interesting to notice that this kind of white ware was imitated by the early makers of European porcelain at St. Cloud and Chelsea, and many of these specimens of white hard paste have been ascribed to Plymouth, which, with Bristol, was the only factory to make hard paste in England. The Chelsea imitation of an Oriental teapot with raised flowers is the one which has the noted mark of the raised anchor on a tablet.

With regard to colour applied under the glaze, blue was the first to be so employed. Cobalt had a facility for cohering with the body itself, therefore it was utilised for decoration before the glaze was applied. Sometimes the transparent white glaze was replaced by a blue tinted glaze. In that case, the blue decoration, applied under the glaze by painting on the body of the ware itself, could be easily seen through the blue glaze. Red, derived from copper,1 was applied under the glaze, sometimes alone, sometimes with blue, forming the decoration of two colours under the glaze. With these colours used under the glaze, as with the blue alone, the blue tinted glaze was frequently substituted for the transparent glaze. This red was the red derived from copper. At about the same period the reds, derived from iron and gold, were applied as enamel colours upon the glaze at a lower temperature than that used in the main kiln. The second kiln was called a "muffle" kiln. The glaze and the enamel colours were both melted by the heat in the muffle kiln, but the body was not affected. Direct heat was not required, but the melting process was sufficient to unite the glaze itself and the enamel colours so firmly that in some cases the coloured enamel might be taken for the glaze. Generally, however, these enamel colours project far enough from the covering glaze as to be easily felt by the finger.

Next followed the use of gold applied to decorations on the black—"famille noire"—and green families or on other enamels. Amongst the most beautiful of these enamels was the green, which was applied upon the glaze by the fire of the "muffle" furnace. This colour was derived from copper, and is called "vert de cuivre." It soon held a high place in the scheme of decoration of vases, plates, and dishes, as well as figures of the highest quality, and is recognised as a distinct family, "la famille verte." But whilst the reds and the greens were enamelled on the glaze, blue was still employed for decoration under the glaze. These "familles" are separately dealt with and illustrated.

In order of the discovery of the colours next comes violet from manganese, and the yellows from cadmium and iron, creating a new series, which is termed the yellow family, "la famille jaune." All these yellows were enamel colours, but they were not often used alone. Sometimes there is a combination of two groups, as green and yellow or green and red. These have been classified as "jaune verte" and "rose verte." We simply refer to these names in case any of our readers should come across them in the descriptive catalogue or in books dealing with Oriental porcelain. Perhaps the most beautiful of all the enamel colours applied to Oriental porcelain is the rose, a red derived from gold. Bearing in mind that we are roughly tracing the age of the colours, that is, the period of their application, this rose red would bring us to the Yung-ching and Keen-lung periods. Enriched as the Chinese potters were by this superb tint, they simply revelled in dominating their productions with it. It is classified as the rose family, "la famille rose." To these periods belong the beautiful class of pink back plates, to which further reference will be made later.

Onward from this time, the trading relations between Europe and China becoming more and more intimate, foreign influences began to make themselves felt in the Chinese potteries; in fact, the Europeans demanded and paid for European shapes and European designs, so that European subjects were reproduced with more or less fidelity, and "armorial" porcelain, on which the arms or crests of European families were painted in enamel on vases, table services, and decorative pieces of various kinds.

At this period, too, we find evidences of the influence of the Christian missionaries in China, as shown by the religious subjects enamelled or painted on plates, such subjects, for instance, as "The Crucifixion" and other scenes of biblical history. We have stated that the decoration was modified to meet the wants of the European market, and we note also that the various shapes were also modified to suit that market. The Chinese used saucer-shaped dishes, but these were largely replaced, for exportation only, by dishes and plates with rims, so that we finally reach the last class, the porcelain called "East India Company" china, decorated with subjects not armorial, nor scriptural, but European. The Chinese themselves were faithful copyists, imitating exactly the pattern from which they had to work. We shall deal with this subject more fully in a later chapter.

CHAPTER V
THE CHIEF OF THE FABULOUS ANIMALS AND TWO GODDESSES

We have dealt shortly with the religions of China, and it is necessary to note in this connection how the emblems of the various religions became embodied as part of the decoration of porcelain; in fact, figures of the gods and goddesses were made associated with the symbols which seemed to indicate their work, and these comprised the dragon, the kylin, the lion, and the Fung-Hwang, Fwang-Hwang, Fong-Hoang or Ho-Ho Bird. N.B.—Variously spelt.

The Dragon.

The dragon is a familiar object on Chinese porcelain, and being the Imperial arms it typifies all that is powerful and indeed terrible. Especially sacred is the dragon of heaven—lung; but li, the dragon of the sea, and kiau, the dragon of mountains and marshes, are also worshipped and feared. The dragons are either scaly, winged, horned, hornless, or rolled up before rising to the sky in spring, or plunging into the water in autumn. The Imperial dragon is armed with five claws on each of its four members, and is used as an emblem by the Emperor's family, and by princes of the highest two ranks. The four-clawed dragon is used by princes of the third or fourth class. Mandarins and princes of the fifth rank have, as an emblem, the four-clawed serpent. The three-clawed dragon—the Imperial dragon of Japan—is, in China, the one commonly used for decoration. The sacred pearl, adorned with the Yang and the Yin, representing the male and female elements in nature, always appears to be attracting the dragon.

The Unicorn, Kylin, or Kilin.

The kylin, or k'i-lin, was an animal symbolising longevity and good government. It is often found upon porcelain as a part of the decoration. Its form is more like a deer than anything else, though it has the hoofs of a horse and the tail of an ox. Its head is like that of the dragon, and the body may or may not be covered with scales. In its mouth a bundle of scrolls or some symbol may often be found. Other monsters, notably the Corean lion, also called the Dog of Buddha or the Dog of FÔ, are called kylins, but the true kylin is as described above. Though hideous in aspect, it shows the kindest disposition, and is so gentle that it would not step upon a worm.

The Corean Lion.

This animal, often miscalled kylin, is the habitual defender of Buddhist altars and temples, hence its name, the Dog of Buddha or the Dog of FÔ. Its appearance is almost always menacing with its sharp, powerful teeth and claws. In reality it is a sort of lion transformed. It has a bushy, often a bristling, mane and a tufted tail. It is found painted on vases, or modelled in relief on the top of the covers for vases. When found as a figure the lion is usually playing with a ball, the lioness with a cub. He is one of four animals representing power and energy. The others are the elephant, leopard, and tiger.

The Fung-Hwang, or Phoenix or Ho-Ho Bird.

This bird, pre-eminent for elegance and benevolence, seems to have been a kind of pheasant, or some say a bird of paradise. It would neither injure living insects nor growing herbs, but lived in the highest regions of the air, and only descended to earth as the harbinger of good tidings—happy events to individuals, prosperous reigns to emperors. On Chinese porcelain either one or two birds are used with a decoration of rocks, trees, and flowers, and in such decorations it is known as the Fong-Hoang, or Ho-Ho bird. It is frequently represented carrying a scroll. In the illustration this scroll has fillets around it.

Amongst the goddesses were two who were especially esteemed. Si-Wang-Mu, the goddess of the Kuen-lung mountains, was a being of the female sex, the head of troups of genii who held from time to time intercourse with favourite disciples amongst the emperors. She is usually represented as riding upon the Ho-Ho amongst the clouds with her attendants, or she rests by the borders of the Lake of Gems, where grows the peach-tree of the genii, whose fruit confers the gift of immortality which Si-Wang-Mu bestows upon those favourite beings who for self-abnegation and devotion to the needs of others have deserved to be admitted into her presence. From this Lake of Gems, too, she sent out winged birds with azure blue feathers who served as her attendants and messengers.

Perhaps even more popular than Si-Wang-Mu was Kwan-Yin, to whom full reference will be made later. Both Si-Wang-Mu and Kwan-Yin are found as decorations upon Oriental porcelain and also as figures, some of the finest of which, shown in our illustrations, date from the Ming period. The eight Immortals will also be spoken of later. These are found in sets of figures or in a group of eight or nine. In the group of nine, Lao-tseu, the founder of Taoism, is the ninth figure.

VI
EARLY
HISTORY OF
PORCELAIN

CHAPTER VI
A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE EARLY HISTORY OF PORCELAIN

Perhaps what we have said will inspire our readers with the desire to know something of the origin of the potter's art in China. This cannot be definitely fixed. It is lost in antiquity. Far back, centuries before the Christian era, possibly when Egyptian civilisation was at its height, legendary history refers to the invention of pottery and, indeed, places the invention of pottery thousands of years B.C. We have no definite information as to what was made, but we may fairly assume that in those remote times the vessels made were only course clay, rude in form, sun-dried or badly baked in an open fire. Then, possibly, the first efforts at glazing were produced and ornamented, the surface was decorated by drawings with a stick in transverse scratches or concentric rings, and simple bits of clay stuck on to the soft surface formed the first applied ornament, gradually developing, and ever far in advance of Western barbarism. The manufacture reaches the period where actual records were available during the Wei dynasty, 220 A.D., when two potteries were recorded as making porcelain for Imperial use. The string of dynasties which follows have but slight interest for the collector. The marks we give (see Marks) range from the Sung dynasty, 960 A.D., to the Tsing dynasty, which came into power in 1644 and continues to the present day. Though we read of porcelain blue as the sky, shining as the looking-glass, thin as paper, giving a sound like a musical stone, we could scarcely hope to find a specimen after the lapse of so many hundred years. Besides, if we did, the piece would be unique and even the experts would doubt its identity. Still, the tiny fragments of this precious ware are recognised in China, and are so valuable that the Chinese have them mounted as personal ornaments.

The first of the dynasties shown in our list has a real claim for consideration, that is, the Sung dynasty, which lasted from 960 to 1279 A.D. The Emperor Chin-tsung, who reigned from 954 to 1007 A.D., adopted as his title name, or nien hao, on coming to the throne, King-te, and he founded the royal manufactory at Chang-nan-Chin, henceforward known as King-te-chin. This city remained for many centuries the greatest manufactory of Chinese porcelain. Here, then, we have definite history of a city in the Chinese provinces of Kiang-si, with a present population of 500,000, in which porcelain has been manufactured for centuries, and where the manufacturing is still carried on, although, through wars and insurrections, the work has now and then been suspended for varying periods. There were numerous other factories in thirteen other provinces, notably in Ho-nan, which had no less than thirteen. Historical incidents occur which show that Oriental porcelain was by slow degrees making its way Westwards. Saladin (1137 to 1193), Sultan of Egypt and Syria, who defended Acre for two years against the Crusaders, sent forty pieces of finest porcelain to Nur-ed-din Mahmud, who recovered Syria from the Crusaders. That celebrated Venetian traveller and author, Marco Polo, writing in 1280, described a visit to a Chinese factory, and stated that the porcelain was exported all over the world. The Yuen dynasty (1279-1367) saw the advent of Roman Catholic missionaries and Florentine traders. They came to Pekin and Hang-chow; and far off Cathay, the land of mystery, romance, and poetry, first made acquaintance with the Western barbarians. We read of porcelain of this period having been moulded, modelled, and painted with flowers. The most noted potter, Pung, was not famous for his own individual work of designing new forms or inventing new colours, but for copying the older wares, and we shall never have an opportunity of seeing his work, which, though beautiful, was very thin and brittle.

CHAPTER VII
THE MING DYNASTY (1368-1644) AND ITS PRODUCTS

The story of the overthrow of the Mongol dynasty by a rebellion headed by a native named Hung-woo, the son of a labouring man, introduces the great Ming dynasty. This man, a former Buddhist priest, captured Nankin in 1355, and thirteen years later he took the title of Emperor. During this dynasty, which lasted till 1644, the progress of the manufacture of porcelain was very marked; indeed, the Chinese themselves are keen collectors of the Ming products, considering them to be the finest ever made. They scarcely exist outside the treasures of the cabinets of princes or of the collections of mandarins. Whether this is due to the extreme devotion of the nation to past history and to their love of ancient relics more than their appreciation of what we consider beautiful, the fact remains that, in the early times, Ming porcelain was rarely exported, so that we have very little to guide us in determining what is or is not porcelain of the Ming period. True, there are the marks, but the marks were copied just as much as the forms and decorations were. The best periods of Ming porcelain arranged in order of merit, and not in order of date, were Suen-tih (1426-1436), Ching-hwa (1465-1488), Yung-lo (1403-1425), Kea-tsing (1522-1567). Ching-hwa is the first in order of reproduction; his mark is most frequently copied.

At about the period of Ching-hwa, Europeans were making efforts to reach the East by sea, and in 1498 Vasco de Gama sailed round the Cape of Good Hope, and thus made an opening, by which eventually trade was carried on by sea to China. The Portuguese were the first to settle in China in 1516. From their factory or settlement in Macco, or Macao, at the entrance to the Canton river, the first sea-borne pieces of Oriental porcelain were sent to Europe by way of the Cape. The conclusion, therefore, must be, in view of these dates, that the earliest pieces found in England and on the Continent were carried overland, by camels, thousands of miles over mountains and through deserts, till at last they reached their European owners. The earliest porcelain found in England—that is, a Celadon bowl presented to New College, Oxford, by Archbishop Warham, and the bowls of Oriental china given in 1506 by Philip of Austria to Sir Thomas Trenchard—came by land. The Portuguese vessels were not content to sail only to China and to exchange its products for those of Europe, for in 1542 they appeared in Japan. Fernam Mendez Pinto in his "Travels," published in 1545, states that he and his companions were cordially received by the Prince of Japan. Evidently, then, at the time when Queen Elizabeth was reigning in England the Portuguese were pushing their trade in the East as the Spaniards were in the West, and, as we have seen, the Portuguese, amongst other commodities, sent Oriental porcelain home, and brought European products back. They brought the Jesuits too. Christian teachers had been at work in China for long years before the Jesuits came, but the activity and knowledge of these gave them great influence amongst the reigning class practically from the close of the sixteenth to the beginning of the eighteenth century. It is said that they had much to do with the evolution of the beautiful enamel colours of the next dynasty, the "Tsing," though the evidence of this is of the slightest. On the contrary, the development appears to have had purely a native origin; an unusual step, it is true, to be taken by a nation which seemed all along the line to be reproducing earlier forms and earlier decoration. From the period when the vases of the Yung-lo period were in demand, painted as they were with lions rolling a ball, with birds or with dark blue or red flowers, we find progress being continually made.

Suen-tih, whose reign is the most celebrated for the production of Ming porcelain, produced very fine examples, with flowers in pale blue, having red fish moulded as handles. Then comes the fine colour paintings of Ching-hwa, through which we reach the perfection of the Kang-he in the Tsing dynasty. It is remarkable that only a few Ming specimens seem to have been identified with enamel colour decoration, though in recent, indeed, quite late times, authorities are ascribing many pieces with green and yellow enamel set in black outline to Ming, rather than to Kang-he. White, green, and crackle pieces are often mentioned in the historical records.

We read that Lord Treasurer Burleigh, William Cecil, Secretary of State for nearly forty years to Queen Elizabeth, offered as a New Year's gift, in 1588, to his royal mistress "one porringer of white porselyn garnished with gold," and another gift of a similar kind was made to the Queen by Mr. Robert Cecil, "a cup of grene pursselyne." Later, we read that amongst the effects of Lady Dorothy Shirley were "purslin stuffe, Chinese stuffe, two dozen of purslin dishes."

It will be noted that it was only with the advent of Shakespeare and the Authorised Version of the Bible that our English spelling took anything like uniformity. The last note regarding Lady Shirley's possessions was made in 1620. In the time which had elapsed between these records much had occurred in the Orient. The Dutch, in 1595, sent out their first expedition to the East Indies, and Queen Elizabeth, not to be outdone, despatched three English ships to China in 1596. Three years later the East India Company was founded, a company which at first could not trade in India or China owing to the fierce opposition of the Portuguese and Dutch. They therefore made their headquarters at Gombron in the Persian Gulf. The china ware was brought overland or by coasting vessels to Gombron, which gave the early name "Gombron ware" to porcelain which was universally used before the adoption of the name "china."

During the Ming dynasty the practice of placing marks upon the porcelain was first adopted, though the rule seems to have been to mark only one piece in a set, yet the method of marking porcelain was far from being universal or methodical. In acquiring Ming porcelain the buyer must be especially careful. For many centuries the old forms were copied, and in counterfeiting the porcelain and decoration it was quite easy to imitate the mark. Here, then, we must once more advise the collector to rely upon sight and touch. We have stated that it is the inspiration of the educated eye regarding the tout ensemble which was largely to be trusted. On the other hand it would not be well to dispense with the necessity for actually handling the piece with the view to detecting differences between the old and the new work. In dealing with fine pieces there is one advantage: they are submitted to expert after expert, whose opinions may vary, but truth is great and will prevail.

The end of the Ming dynasty was rapidly approaching. The Tartars, with shaven head and pigtail, were "as the storm clouds which had been collecting for some time," and at length they "burst over the Empire." The space of time between the years 1616 and 1644, when the struggle for supremacy between the Ming and Tsing dynasties was at its height, leaves the identification of porcelain made during that period a matter of considerable difficulty. In a national struggle, art manufactures are the first to suffer, so that it is quite probable that only a small output of porcelain took place during those troublous years. In revising the Ming period note should be made that Hung-woo preferred black, blue, and white ornaments; and that gold used as the decoration for a dark-blue ground was first employed. In Yung-lo's time intense patches of colour were used, and there was a development with regard to the reds; a dark red was widely adopted. The paintings of flowers and of birds and beasts, mainly used figuratively as emblems, became far more delicate.

The Ching-hwa potters seem to have adopted a delicacy and a mastery over the art of porcelain decoration scarcely ever met with in history. It is true that the supply of blue failed, the cobalt was of an inferior quality, but the coloured painting reached high perfection. The marks and designs of the Ching-hwa period furnished unexampled opportunities for copying, for although the later Kang-he showed, without doubt, the finest blue and white with regard to colour that was ever made, the pattern generally adopted can be distinctly traced to Ching-hwa.

Kea-tsing was noted for the use of enamel colours of a beautiful depth and quality. About this time pure white cups were made imitating white jade, but the quality of the porcelain is inferior to many of the other periods because one of the sources of supply of porcelain earth failed.

CHAPTER VIII
THE TSING DYNASTY. KANG-HE PERIOD (1661-1722)

Bearing in mind the struggle between the Mings and the Tartars, which lasted, as we have seen, from 1616 to 1644, we may take Shun-che (1644-1661) as the first real Tsing Emperor. Properly, the title of the dynasty, which has existed to our own times, would be the Manchu, Manchoo, or Tae-tsing or Ta Tsing dynasty, which is the twenty-second Imperial dynasty. The most distinguished Emperor in connection with the manufacture of porcelain was the second, named Kang-he, who had a long and peaceful reign from 1661 to 1722; in fact, he is the only Emperor who reigned for a complete Chinese cycle of sixty years, and we shall find amongst our marks that the sixty-first year is distinguished by a cycle mark and not by the "nien-hao," or name mark. Note Fig. 1 in the marks.

Under Kang-he's guidance the porcelain manufacture received an immense impetus. Many improvements were adopted and new colours introduced, especially the enamel colours. Amongst the noted potters living long before his reign were two whose names have come down to us, although identification of their work is impossible. The famous Pung, as before noted, was an excellent potter, but he was only copyist of old forms. Chow was a later potter who, near the end of the Ming dynasty, also excelled in imitating ancient vases. The work of these two old potters were copied at first by potters of the Kang-he period. "Franks" says: "It is probably to this reign that we must refer most of the old specimens of Chinese porcelain that are to be seen in collections, even when they bear earlier dates."

What generally were the qualifications and characteristics of the productions of King-te-chin in this reign? Our illustrations, which should be read carefully, will give guidance to the careful student regarding the Chinese porcelain that was then produced. There seems to have been little doubt that the three-coloured pieces, decorated with yellow, green, and aubergine, were direct copies of the Ming products. Aubergine is a puzzling word and requires explanation. It is a transparent enamel resembling the egg plant in the variation and gradation of its colours, from grey to purple or having various shades up to a rich brown. It will be found in the trees, stems, and branches, forming a principal part of the scheme of colour decoration. The black family—"famille noire"—is of the same period. The black may be composed of other colours, but it is usually coated with a transparent green enamel. Notice that there is a dull black, a mirror black, and this black covered with green enamel. Kang-he black will receive due attention in the illustrations. It is rare and very valuable.

Perhaps the finest porcelain produced during the Kang-he period was the green family, sometimes used with blue under the glaze. Wan-leih, the Ming Emperor, is sometimes credited with introducing this green enamel. This, however, seems very improbable, for twice in his reign the Japanese invaded Korea, and the Tartars were always in rebellion. On the whole the balance of evidence points to the green family as being a genuine product of the Kang-he period. Another product of the same period was the green enamel used with blue enamel over the glaze, so that it is well to note that the fine greens which are classified as "famille verte" are usually ascribed to this period. The blue and white of the Kang-he period has been noted before. The most lovely quality of this decoration must be always referred to this period.

Whether we consider the cobalt blue as a colour, as in the celebrated ginger jar with prunus flowers sold at Christie's for 5,900 guineas, or such pieces as we show in our illustration from Mr. Duveen's collection, worth £2,000 each, from 1720 right down to our own times this ware has been copied and ever recopied, but there is something in the blue used for decoration, something, too, in the quality of the white porcelain itself, and again something in the glaze, an intense brilliancy. These furnish a combination which has never been rivalled.

The Kang-he period was noted for a very rare biscuit Celadon, in which the surface of the panels in relief is unglazed, though the remainder of the decoration is blue under the glaze. Another fine quality of porcelain was that with archaic decoration having conventional flowers and bands in black and green. The marks of the Kang-he period vary. In the earlier part of his reign the double blue circle and the Kang-he nien-hao are frequent, but collectors must note that many specimens of this period have no date mark at all. If the two blue rings are used there are no letters inside. The reason of this is rather curious. In 1677 the superintendent of the works gave an order to the factories at King-te-chin, in which he forbade the inscription of the Emperor's name or the characters which gave the history of their sacred great men. This order was given because it was thought that if the porcelain was broken it would be reflecting upon the honour of the Emperor or of these sanctified persons who were represented not alone by inscriptions, but by paintings used in the decoration. However, this law did not remain in force for a very long period. When a piece is found with empty rings or with the symbol marks of the fungus leaf, &c., it can be assigned to a few years later than 1677. The importation to Europe had reached considerable dimensions before this.

We read that in 1664 nearly 50,000 pieces of rare Japanese china were imported into Holland and about 17,000 more of various kinds from Batavia by the Dutch East India Company. In this connection the rivalry between the Dutch and the Portuguese must be noted, because it affected the Oriental trade in porcelain very considerably. Stirred up by the Dutch, the Japanese, in 1640, excited by their fears of the ultimate designs of the Portuguese and the Spaniards, who had later appeared upon the scene, banished them in favour of the Dutch. Some thousands of Christian converts were massacred, and the Dutch were fully established at Nagasaki, where they laid the foundation of that progress towards Western civilisation to which the world, and especially Japan, owes so much.

CHAPTER IX
THE YUNG-CHING PERIOD (1723-1736)

The Yung-Ching period (1723-1736), though only thirteen short years, was peculiarly noteworthy, because the Emperor himself took a personal interest in the Imperial factories at King-te-chin, and also in the head of the establishment, Hien-Hsi-yao, who, in 1727, was entrusted with the management. In porcelain much depends upon the potting, and in the actual potting the products of Yung-Ching were far superior to any that had before appeared. The drawing, too, was in every way better, the colours, though not so brilliant, showed such care and taste in blending that even the fine "famille verte" suffers by comparison. As a rule, the decoration was so applied that the porcelain could be admired—that is, the whole surface was not covered by the ornamentation. In some of the smaller pieces the result of this plan is beyond all praise. Only one product suffered. The blue was far inferior to that of Kang-he.

We have already praised the quality of the cobalt applied as decoration to vases, ginger jars, &c., of the Kang-he period. As if to balance this default the rose colour from gold was discovered, which gave birth to the rose family, "famille rose." Other products which had their beginnings in this reign are worthy of notice. First there was a black decorated with colour, mainly with arabesques or curl work. The porcelain was of fine quality and the scheme of colour so subdued as to be entirely pleasing to the eye, the black being relieved by pattern in faint green and further decorated in white, pale yellow, and aubergine of such an admirable character that one wonders why Yung-ching porcelain is not more appreciated. Still the rose decoration begun so successfully in this period, under the succeeding Emperor, received such attention as placed it in the front rank of Oriental porcelain In fact, we may say more. Collectors of the rose family care nothing for Ming with its greens and yellows, nothing for Kang-he with its "famille verte" and black, but they esteem and value above all the "famille rose," the Yung-ching chef d'oeuvre, which we shall deal with later when we come to Keen-lung. The pieces of the Yung-ching period, decorated with blue under the glaze with enamel in colour over the glaze, exhibited the same distinctive features which typical china of this period showed—that is, excellent potting and a skilful blending of the under-glaze blue with the enamel colours over the glaze. There is this noteworthy distinction, too, the decoration on the backs of bowls and dishes is almost equal to that on the front. This is a helpful hint, to which careful note should be given.

Perhaps one of the most puzzling and at the same time interesting forms of decoration was the blue used in conjunction with peach bloom. These specimens were ornamented with combinations of three lines either long or bissected, called the Pa-kwa, the single mark forming a trigram essentially male if the long lines were in the ascendant, and female when the half lines were most numerous. The later marks or symbolical devices will deal more fully with the Pa-kwa. Peach-bloom was undoubtedly first introduced in the reign of Kang-he, and the really valuable and fine examples belong to this period only. It is altogether a misleading term to those who are not experts, who expect to find the delicate pink of the peach blossom or flower. Peach bloom is nothing of this kind. Imagine a dark reddish brown of unusual but beautiful tone pierced through its surface in flecks of dark green and spots of pink such as the flower would be when the first touch of spring coaxed it from the dark-coloured sepal with flecks of green and a touch of pink. It is the colour of the bud when the peach begins to bloom, not the pink of the peach blossom so prettily tinted with yellow. Peach bloom and "clair de lune" are the two very finest self-colours which take precedence even of "sang de boeuf." We shall have occasion to occur to this again in the chapter on self-colours.

The next class is black with coral red under the glaze; in fact, two colours are found under the glaze in the Yung-ching period, blue and red. The red is of a brilliant tone, not so striking as the red from gold, but still very lovely in its combination with blue. Sometimes these two are used together with added enamel colours, but frequently in under-glaze decoration that favourite ornament, the five-clawed dragon in pursuit of the crystal ball or pearl, may be found. The circular device ball or pearl showing the Yang and the Yin, signs for the male and the female elements in nature, were at this period raised on the surface, and in over-glaze enamels both the waves and the clouds were tinted with various shades of green and purple and aubergine edged with black.

We have already referred to the rose family, in which the enamel decoration was most carefully and artistically carried out in all its detail. The preponderating influence was a brilliant rose colour accompanied by green, yellow, and blue, all in enamel colours, which were not less striking because still subordinate to the beautiful pink. When waves were used in the decoration they were of a charming sea-green Celadon enamel. The blue painted under the glaze has already been referred to as being inferior in quality, in colour and brilliance to the products of Kang-he. In fact, we must repeat that no blue and white was ever equal to the Kang-he ginger jars and vases decorated with the prunus pattern, usually called the hawthorn, with the lip unglazed on the outside and partly glazed on the inside.

Present day potters produce blue and white ginger jars, but the blue of Kang-he is unapproachable, the paste is exquisite, and the glaze is incomparable. The Yung-ching potters did well in blue and white, and the blues, though less brilliant, were very bright and pleasing. The distinctive feature of the period is that the borders of the vases were incised after the manner of the Ming blue and white, a pattern which appears at no other periods. Let us try to explain this. About an inch from the top of the vases there is an incised pattern, a pattern cut in double incised lines, altogether forming a band about half an inch wide. A similar incised band is found round the base. Yung-ching blue, and white often has a decoration of rocks, waves and curious conventional ground in blue of a carefully painted peach-tree springing from the rocks, painted blossoms of a rich red tone with reddish or yellowish brown spots distributed over the white as if to emphasise the form of the decoration. The contrast between the delicacy of the detail is striking when compared with the broad treatment of the Kang-he period. On the one hand there is fine stipple work. This is Yung-ching. On the other hand there is a broad, bold wash of colour. This is Kang-he. One of the most effective forms of decoration is what is widely known as powder or powdered blue, in which the cobalt was sprayed through gauze or dabbed either upon the whole surface, or upon all of the surface except that which by mechanical means was reserved. Students of Oriental china will often come across the expression "painted in reserves or compartments." By this is meant that the scheme of decoration of the whole surface has been so far modified that certain panels have been left in white for further decoration. Hence we get reserves of various shapes with varying decorations—powder blue vases with reserves decorated in blue; powder blue vases with reserves decorated in "famille verte," and so on. The apparently granulated surface of the powder blue is due to the colour having been blown through the fine gauze or dabbed on the whole portion that was not reserved.

Celadon was brought to great perfection in this reign. Not only the various tints of green usually known by that name, and not only the brilliant white Celadon glaze with raised decoration in which a Celadon green is effectively employed, but various glazes in which the colour, being applied in the glaze, was included in the same term Celadon. The decoration, often floral, was noted for its subdued tones of pink, mauve, red, and orange. Vases of the Ming dynasty, especially the Suen-tih and Ching-hwa periods, were copied and recopied in every detail. Beautiful bowls were largely made with Celadon or coral grounds, with figures or other ornaments in coloured enamel; sometimes reserves or compartments in white had special treatment of figure decoration. Other specimens imitated jade or agate or cornelian or some other stone. The well-known pale green Celadon is the only one known to the trade by the name Celadon. Red or blue Celadons would be classed under self-colours.

We have noted the green family, "famille verte," of Kang-he. The Yung-ching products of the same class differ from it in the quality of the colours used. The green enamel itself was much thinner and not so brilliant; it often had a blue shade, but it too was applied as an enamel in conjunction with the under-glaze blue decoration. Instead of the reds from copper the reds from iron were effectively used. A colouring like the red of rusty iron was used in several shades, ranging from an orange red to a bright orange, or even to a salmon pink. Other colours in soft tones were used, but a chief point to remember is that whilst the design was usually drawn in blue under the glaze, all the enamel colours were applied over the glaze, so that a blue tinge is conspicuous, and it is a help to identification.

A reference was made earlier to the rose family. This was a red from gold, and perhaps its highest development is seen in the brilliant ruby-back plates of the Yung-ching and Keen-lung periods. This colour had its origin in Yung-ching's short reign, and the shades of it vary from pink to purple. As enamel, the rose colour is most wonderfully applied to flowers, drapery, &c., and really it is far more decorative than the green, the powder blue, or indeed any other colour. It has their artistic merit, and the additional one of being a soft and most attractive tint, if green represents the leaves, rose pictures the flowers; and perhaps the most lovely combination is "rose verte," where both of these are used in harmony.

CHAPTER X
THE KEEN-LUNG PERIOD (1736-1795)

During the first seven years of the reign of this Emperor there was but little variation in the character of the porcelain manufacture at King-te-chin. In 1743, however, a new director was appointed to the works—Thang-ing—who continued the high quality of the manufacture of the two previous reigns, and brought the rose family to the most perfect state. Indeed, though the European influence exerted by the Jesuits may possibly have been more powerful than before, yet no European china quite reaches the glowing brilliance of these Chinese vases and dishes. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and Chelsea tried to copy the rose colour, the result being the fine claret colour of the Chelsea china. SÈvres came nearest with the Rose du Barri, but, after all, the lover of old Oriental porcelain devotes all his energies to the acquisition of specimens made and decorated in the old times, imitations perhaps of very early Chinese products, but perfectly Chinese in instinct and impression.

It is difficult, if not impossible, to separate Keen-lung china from Yung-ching in unmarked pieces before the full developement of the "rose famille," but the reign of Keen-lung was so much longer comparatively, and during the period the porcelain manufacture was so active, that it will be safe to ascribe the fine specimens of this rose family to it as well as to Yung-ching, when the invention of the rose enamel took place. In the last reign we considered, but only shortly, this "famille rose." The exquisite delicacy of these specimens lies in the combination of an elaborate, but refined, style of decoration in which the painting was most artistic, with the graceful shapes of the pieces themselves. There are other types, bolder in colour, broader in execution, and, it may be, equally beautiful. Take, for example, a vase; its body would be covered with large sprays of flowers in rose, yellow, and other enamels, but the rose predominates and gives an effect which is very rich and striking. Chrysanthemums, peonies, irises or flags, anemones, pumpkin vines with flowers and fruit—all these were in common use with birds and butterflies, fishes and insects no less finely coloured, and, as it were, thrown up into relief by the use of black with that transparent green enamel which we have before described, and here and there a black spot is applied for the same purpose of enhancing the value of the coloured enamels. The porcelain body of the Keen-lung period is very fine and white, many of the specimens having a style of painting peculiar to the Chinese artists of this period. Flowers such as those we have mentioned—the chrysanthemum, peony, and rose—seem to be ribbed, as if when the enamel was not quite dry a tool was used for the purpose of breaking up the enamel and in this way getting finer effects from reflected light. The porcelain itself sometimes assumed a wavy appearance, such as would be left by the potter's fingers when the piece was turned on the wheel. A similar wavy appearance is found on characteristic pieces on Bristol hard paste porcelain when turned upon the wheel.

Amongst the rarest decoration of this class of porcelain in this period is what is called "mille fleurs." In this class the whole surface is covered with a thousand flowers in variety painted exquisitely in enamel colours of every conceivable hue. Yet though the colours are so varied there is nothing but the most pleasing and harmonious effect. Pale lilac, reds and yellows, alternate with delicate shades of greys and blues. When the panels are left in reserves, a figure decoration is freely applied to them, and the figures depicted represent the spirits of the flowers. On the bases, which are covered with pale sea-green enamel, are found the square seal marks of the Emperor Keen-lung. It is scarcely possible to have the privilege of seeing such perfect work of Ceramic art, but the collection of the late Mr. W. G. Gulland, of Brunswick Terrace, Hove, was especially rich in "mille fleurs" pieces.

The class allied to this, but probably later in date, is "mille cerfs"—that is, a decoration consisting of numberless deer ranging in a forest. The colour is not nearly as brilliant as in the "mille fleurs" class, though the same wavy porcelain is to be noted. The green, bluish in tone, like the greens of the Yung-ching period, are harmonised with browns; in fact, the aubergines merge into sepia or brown. The hills are green and brown with some hilltops in blue enamel. The birds are painted quite thinly in rather dull reds. This glaze could be fairly described as late "famille verte." In this period the Celadons show considerable advance. Celadons were produced late in the Ming and early Kang-he periods, and cover a range of tints which are difficult to describe, as we have seen in the case of peach bloom and "clair de lune." The "sang de boeuf" is also difficult to describe, so that a pilgrimage should be made to any Museum which has a genuine specimen. For instance, in the British Museum, Oriental Section, in the centre of a large cabinet, there is a small bottle-shaped vase which is a real "sang de boeuf," a glaze of a brilliant colour shaded towards a deeper claret and the base shading away into a pale yellow, pink towards the lip, which retains the soft, natural tone of the body or paste. Then just below the neck the "sang de boeuf" seems to glow with the intensity of the ruby, just before it falls from the shoulder of the piece towards the base. Other colours of this period are known as pigeon's blood and chicken's blood, crimson, crushed strawberry, and so on. To nearly all of these colours the remarks which apply to the shading of the "sang de boeuf" can be noticed upon the specimens themselves. Here the glaze starts at the top of the vase or vessel; there is a yellowish tinge, and the colour has several gradations until it ends at the base. These reds originated in the late Ming period, reached high excellence under Kang-he, and continued through Yung-ching's reign, and under Keen-lung maintained their high perfection.

The Keen-lung red Celadon has a somewhat blue shade when the light is reflected at an angle. It is well to remember that all those colours which are called Celadon, or self-coloured, have the tints mixed in the glaze. Besides the reds, there are blues of many shades, violets, mauves, &c.—in fact, any colour that could be applied in the glaze was used as the sole decoration of fine porcelain. It is true that in many of the fine vases the body is moulded with flowers or dragons or other patterns, yet the glaze was a whole glaze and therefore Celadon. Notwithstanding this, the Celadon surface was itself frequently decorated by designs in enamel colours outlined in black. As we have before shown, it is easy to know whether a piece is decorated with Celadon or with enamel, because all enamel colours stand out from the glazed surface to which it is applied, and by passing the fingers over the decoration the enamel can be felt. This brings us to certain facts that must be remembered.

Enamels, like Celadons, may be of any colour. They are always burnt in so as to amalgamate with the cover glaze, even if that cover glaze be itself coloured and therefore Celadon. Also there are but a few colours which can be applied before glazing, that is, upon the paste or body directly. We have seen that blue and red were so applied. This brings us to the other development. The Keen-lung class of blue and red under the glaze was derived from that discovered in the Yung-ching period. Its application was developed with surprising skill by the finest workmen, so that the application of copper red under the glaze, in combination with blue, gave splendid opportunities for these artists to display their pre-eminent skill for freehand drawing in applying designs upon the biscuit porcelain before the glazing took place. If, for example, you pass your hand over a piece decorated under the glaze, you will find a surface perfectly smooth, the colour has sunk into the paste.

The next note is worth remembering, because it may be applied as a practical test to distinguish between the old and the modern blue under the glaze. This test of modern blue is to be found with the finest strokes, whereas in the old work each stroke is perfectly smooth or uniform in its outline, never laboured, never hatched, but simple strokes which plainly follow the American plan of never taking three strokes when one stroke will do. Most of the modern work reveals a tiny blue dot at the pull-off of the fine hair brush or pencil. The drawing and writing of the Chinese was always done by means of a pencil held perfectly upright by the fingers, so that by examination of the pencil marks it is quite easy to see whether the blue lines have inequality, especially at the point where the brush is removed, and our readers may detect forgeries of the old marks as well as the old drawings by noticing this blue dot at the end of the stroke. It is never found upon an old piece.

The coral red family, which belongs peculiarly to this period, is extremely pleasing, and a very fine result is secured when used with blue under the glaze, leaving the design outlined in red, so that the red, white, and blue harmonise perfectly. But the coral red was also used under the glaze as a ground colour. Then it was thickly powdered with white chrysanthemum leaves and flowers, and it had white reserves often decorated with sprays of conventional white lotus, chrysanthemums, and magnolia. The Chinese varied the colours in their decoration with wonderful effect. Blue under the glaze was, as we have seen, associated with reds under the glaze, but it was quite effective with enamels over the glaze, and we may take this as the next class of the period. The design, or any part of it, was applied to the paste, then the piece was glazed and fired so that on coming from the kiln it was simply a white porcelain piece having blue, or red and blue, decoration under the glaze. Then enamel colours were used to complete the design, such as green enamels with the blue designs showing through them and thin dull reds under the glaze, as before noted, whilst the rest of the piece was coated with decoration in yellow, blue, or even white enamel colours.

Perhaps the most—and here adjectives fail: charming, lovely, famous are words which arise in the mind—ruby, pink, rose eggshell plates really should be seen rather than described. These all belong to the "famille rose." But eggshell was not confined to this family. Dated specimens seem to indicate that the two earlier reigns had seen the origin and progress of this beautiful ruby porcelain, but there is no doubt that many of the finest of the marked pieces belonged to the Keen-lung period, though Yung-ching produced excellent specimens.

Let us give a few examples from the sale-rooms. But first we could wish that all who will read this chapter could betake themselves to the Victoria and Albert Museum, to the British Museum, to Duveen's or Gorer's in Bond Street, and see for themselves what Chinese eggshell plates really are. The Salting Collection in the Museum at South Kensington has very fine specimens, and the British Museum has similar specimens in two flat cases, which, unfortunately, do not allow the full value of the ruby back to be appreciated. At Duveen's there are two cases filled with the loveliest specimens ranged before a looking-glass, which enables the visitor to see both the design on the front of the plate and the lovely colour at the back.

It is surprising, and yet not astonishing from the point of view of the collector who will have the best, to notice the prices which have been paid for these plates, which are quite small, ranging from 7-3/4 in. to 8-1/2 in. diameter. A few examples will help in enabling us to estimate their value. One eggshell plate, enamelled with chrysanthemums and a sparrow, and with sprays of peonies round the border, on pink diaper-pattern ground, 8 in. in diameter, sold at the sale of Louis Huth's Collection for £105. The other prices realised at the same sale are no less striking. Saucer dishes, pair, eggshell, with ruby backs, enamelled with branches of chrysanthemums and peonies on a white ground, 8 in. in diameter, sold for £80, but a better pair, enamelled with cocks and peonies in the centre on white ground, with pale green trellis border, 7-3/4 in. in diameter, realised £400. One saucer dish, enamelled with a pheasant, quail and peonies in the centre, and a pale green marble border with pink prunus blossom, and three panels containing flowers, 8 in. in diameter, brought £135. The first and last of these were not pink-backed, but they were certainly beautiful.

Other eggshell plates at the same sale with ruby backs, which we will describe shortly, even at the risk of appearing monotonous, were: one enamelled with ladies and children in the centre, diaper border, with three panels of flowers, 8-3/4 in. in diameter, which realised £150; another, enamelled with quails and chrysanthemums in the centre, with pink and green diaper borders and three panels of flowers, £155; another, enamelled with a lady and two children by a table, in a leaf-shaped panel, on gold ground, with border of various coloured diapers, 8-1/4 in. in diameter, £200. Two saucer dishes, enamelled with peonies and persimmon fruit in the centre, and shaped border of diaper ground, the border on green ground, with pale pink trellis edge, 7-5/8 in. in diameter, £310. A similar pair, but enamelled with ladies and children and vases in the centre, on a white ground, with pale green trellis pattern border, and three panels of black, 7-3/4 in. in diameter, fetched the same price, £310. The gem of the whole collection was a plate, finely enamelled with a group of ladies and children, vases and utensils in the centre, with seven borders of various diapers and small panel of flowers, 8-1/8 in. in diameter, £280.

The plate with the seven borders is the most famous of these eggshell ruby-back plates. The centre panel or reserve is leaf-shaped, having in enamel colours, very delicately painted, a lady seated with two boys; near her is a table on which are books; vases behind her and two vases on her left. This panel is surrounded by six diaper borders of various widths, of which the two chief are a deep ruby, interrupted by four reserves in blue enamel, and the other a pale lilac with four reserves enclosing flowers. Between reserves are four dragons in white. The diaper around the leaf is the seventh border. There are other diaper patterns in the five and four border plates which have in the leaf-shaped central panel a decoration which is very similar. Some, however, of these eggshell plates have no diaper work, the sole decoration consisting of two cocks, beautifully enamelled, near rocks and foliage. Indeed, these birds are often found in plates with borders. Similar eggshell plates may have landscapes or flowers as the central decoration with or without diaper borders. The name ruby back is given to these plates because the whole of the back, excepting the centre inside the rim, is enamel with a beautiful ruby tint. Indeed, we may say that these plates are amongst the very finest creations of the Yung-ching and Keen-lung periods. To the eggshell china belong the delicate Mandarin vases which, probably, were made for exportation.

CHAPTER XI
MANDARIN PORCELAIN—KEEN-LUNG PERIOD (1736-1795) AND LATER

A mandarin is a Chinese official, either civil or military, but the word itself is not Chinese. It is a name given indiscriminately by foreigners to designate any Chinese official of whatever rank. The recognised official grades of mandarins are nine, each distinguished by its dress. The so-called button on the hat—the mandarin button—is conspicuous. It is really a very valuable jewel, and, like the rest of the dress, is worn under precise regulations. It will be interesting to notice how the mandarin's rank is shown by the dress. The coats were always embroidered with gold and were of coloured silk.

In the first order, the button on the hat was a bead and above that an oblong button of transparent ruby red—transparent red. The coat was violet, with a square plaque on the breast and back decorated, in the civil class with a pelican, in the military class with a kylin, whilst the belt was ornamented with four agate stones set in rubies. In the second class, the button was a red coral button resting on the ruby bead—red opaque. The coat had embroidered plaques decorated with a hen for the civil class, and a lion for the military class. The belt was ornamented with four embroidered plaques with rubies. The third class had a sapphire button—blue transparent. The coat had embroidered plaques decorated with peacock's plumes, each feather having only one eye. The symbolical peacock represented the civil class, and the panther the military class. The belt was ornamented with four plaques of worked gold. In the fourth class an azure-coloured button of lapis lazuli—blue opaque—rested upon a small sapphire bead. The coat had embroidered plaques decorated with the crane for the civil, and the tiger for the military mandarins. The belt was ornamented with four plaques and a silver button.

The fifth class had a rock crystal button—white transparent—resting on the small sapphire bead; the embroidered plaques were decorated with the white pheasant for the civil, and the bear as the symbolical emblems. The belt was similar to the last class. The sixth class had a button of white polished opalescent shell—white opaque—with a blue feather. On the embroidered plaques of the coat were the emblems of a stork for the civil, and a little tiger for the military divisions. Four tortoise-shell plaques and a silver button ornamented the belt. The seventh class had a button of plain gold—yellow brilliant—on a crystal bead. The embroidered coat had a partridge for the decoration of the civil division, and a rhinoceros for the military. The belt was ornamented with four round silver plaques. The eighth class had two buttons, one upon the other, of worked gold—yellow opaque. The embroidered plaque of the coat bore the quail as the symbol of the civil division, and the stork as the symbol of the military division. The belt had four ram's head plaques and a silver button. The ninth or last class had the second button of worked silver—blank opaque. The embroidered coat showed the sparrow as the emblem of the civil mandarins, and the sea-horse as the emblem of the military. Four black horn plaques and a silver button decorated the belt.

It will be seen that Chinese porcelain decorated with figures such as these dressed in their robes received the name of Mandarin china. The actual word comes from the Portuguese "Mandar, to command." Much could be said upon the subject of Chinese dress, as applied to porcelain in decoration, but it is only necessary to contrast the style of the Ming and the Tartar dresses.

The Ming long, flowing robes are held up with sashes, and the hair, turned up over the head, is either covered with a soft head-dress or with the Court ceremonial head-dress.

The Mandarin dress of the Tartar shows the robe principally, but there are besides the pantaloons and the high boots with thick soles. The hair is dressed in pigtail fashion, for from their earliest youth the Chinese children are shaved. The boys are shaved all over the head except at the top, and in the case of girls two tufts are left, one over each ear. These facts, while furnishing no actual clue to the age of Mandarin china, showed that at least it could not have been manufactured before the Tartars came into power in 1644. Probably the date of its manufacture is later.

We can understand that these Tartars, who had enforced their own dress upon the conquered people, but who had at the same time adopted their religion, would continue copying the holy persons such as the eight immortals, the genii, &c., in the same dresses which had been in use for hundreds of years. More than this, there seems to be a strong element of truth in the statement that the Mandarin decoration was due to the desire of the European traders to carry home porcelain which should illustrate the people, and the style and the colour of their clothes. If this is so, then the Yung-ching period would be the first in which Mandarin china was produced. At any rate we do know that most of it was made in Keen-lung's reign, and that the potters of the later Emperors, to our own times, have been manufacturing large quantities for commercial purposes.

In Mandarin china the figures vary in boldness and in general character, but the colouring is of one class—pinks, reds, yellows, blues, and greens, so distinct in tone as to receive the name of Mandarin colours. The decoration of this kind of china includes boys and men at games, such as kite-flying; warriors fighting, marching, or resting; men and children in masks; figures walking, riding on horses or on vehicles; lantern shows with scores of people, besides many other designs. This Mandarin decoration is associated with great varieties in the ground colours and patterns. Such are the swastika ground, the red ground, the blue ground mottled over the glaze, and the scroll ground. There are also many diaper patterns and a variety of borders of flowers, butterflies, dragons, sometimes in low relief, whilst often examples are met with in which the vases are recessed so as to furnish a flat surface in which the decorative painting of figures, flowers, and birds lies flat in a shaped compartment or reserve, which may be joo-e-shaped, leaf-shaped, kakemono-shaped, or makemono-shaped. In studying the vases given as illustrations these varieties of shaped panels should be noted, as they are constantly used in catalogue descriptions of the decoration. Amongst the most beautiful vases of this period are the conical-shaped eggshell vases with short necks, covered with the most delicate scroll work in gilt, having large reserves decorated with Mandarin figures painted with the utmost delicacy, and the small reserves with rose and other flowers most carefully drawn.

The question has been raised as to whether transfer printing as a mechanical process was ever applied to Oriental porcelain. In England, Dr. Wall, of Worcester, is said to have invented transfer printing as early as 1751, and Sadler and Green, of Liverpool, lay claim to the honour of its discovery at about the same time, whilst on the Continent a similar honour is claimed for the factory at Marieberg in 1760. There is no proof that any blue and white Oriental china, except during the most recent times, was ever decorated on a transfer-printed ground. All of the blue and white Nankin and Canton ware was painted by hand under the glaze. When we consider the immense amount of labour necessary to keep up the supply of porcelain to Europe, and also to the United States early in the nineteenth century, it is astonishing that no process work showing transfer printing can be discovered, although the invention must have spread to China before 1796 when Keen-lung died.

We shall treat of "blanc de chine" later, when we discuss the colours of Oriental china, but it must be remembered that most of the Chinese ware of this type was made during this period. Such were the statuettes of Kwan-Yin and many other gods and goddesses. This cream-white porcelain may date from any period even before Kang-he. The earliest specimens are distinguished by being transparent, although thick, and by the creamy smoothness of their glaze. Some authors, however, ascribe the origin of this ware to the Keen-lung period.

CHAPTER XII
KEA-KING, TAOU-KWANG, AND THE LATER EMPERORS

Kea-King (1796-1821).

When any country is disturbed by internal divisions or by external invasion, the inhabitants pay less and less devotion to art. The reign of this king was certainly disturbed. The people suffered from misrule, and though the traditions of the Chinese potters did still keep up, in a measure, the high standard of the previous reign, the neglect of the governing bodies, of the Emperor and Court, took away much of their devotion to the development of the porcelain so conspicuous in Keen-lung's reign. The porcelain, however, remained good in the quality of its paste, and now and then it reached excellence with regard to the decoration, which became characterised by conventional designs. Coloured enamels and gold were largely used for ornamentation, the turquoise blue, "famille rose," and a good blue-green were conspicuous. Mandarin china still continued to be made, though the modelling was comparatively clumsy and the paste thick, still, however, having the wavy surface always noticeable in Mandarin china, which was, as we have said, largely made for the European market. The influence of Western art made itself felt in the decoration. Many scenes were painted with European subjects, especially in the small reserves or vignettes. Some of the finest forms, too, of the early SÈvres and early Wedgwood and Adams' styles were copied and decorated with festoons of raised husks with a landscape in a medallion. This wavy porcelain seems to be specially connected with a comparatively thick blue enamel and a style of decoration usually called Lowestoft. Of course it is not Lowestoft. Lowestoft was a soft paste porcelain imitating early Bow and Worcester. The porcelain of the Keen-lung period, then, might be named the porcelain of commerce. European forms of pieces not used by the Chinese themselves are often found. The process seemed to have been something like this. The East India Company, all the captains and officers of the East India Company's ships, when visiting China took with them orders for services to be decorated with crests or armorial bearings, with English landscapes, or with sporting or religious subjects. Blue and white was made in vast quantities owing to the demand from Europe. It needs but one sentence of description. It was poor. About this time the Chinese potters copied the Japanese. Imari ware, with its flowers in conventional forms, various Celadons in blue, lilac, grey-white on good fine porcelain, are traced to this reign. Perhaps it was most celebrated for the reproductions of the porcelain of earlier periods in which both pattern and mark were constantly recopied.

Taou-Kwang (1821-1851).

In this period there was a special development of the enamelled rice bowl, although beautiful vases so decorated with enamel as to cover the whole surface are not uncommon. The use of two shades of green produces a very pleasing and comparatively new effect. Unfortunately, the Chinese potteries, as in the previous reign, seemed to have devoted much of their time to reproductions. The rice bowls were often decorated in graviata, graffito, or sgraffito patterns, in which the enamel was scratched with a point into a variety of twists and turns, forming beautiful variations from the ordinary plain enamel surface. This surface was also painted with flowers and figures. The process seems to have been first adopted by Keen-lung, and many pieces have the Keen-lung mark. In a set of four very fine examples which came under our notice three had the Keen-lung mark, and the fourth that of Taou-kwang. In all probability the majority of them were made in the later reign and the earlier mark was copied. The copying during this reign included all the older forms from the Kang-he period, and it excelled in reproducing the "famille verte" and the "famille rose." Perhaps the Yung-ching green enamel received the most special attention, for the outline of the design is often found first painted in blue under the glaze, so that the blue shows through the transparent surface enamels and gives a bluish tint to the decoration generally, which was quite the effect produced by a similar decoration in Yung-ching's reign.

To the same class of rice bowls belong the pierced porcelains with patterns filled with glaze. Here the rice pattern is cut through the paste while the paste was soft. Then as usual the blue decoration was applied painted on by hand, and certain parts received a coating of white enamel before the whole was carefully glazed. The skilful glazing is shown by the evenness with which the pattern, in glaze, matches the general surface of the piece itself. The rice or star pattern is the most common of all these pierced porcelains. Some specimens have, however, a diaper pattern, and more rarely a dragon design with flowers and leaves, so cut that portions only are filled with glaze, which gives a very unusual and striking effect. These pierced specimens are not supposed to be earlier than the eighteenth century, and of course they may be very much later.

Heen-Fung (1851-1862).

Very little porcelain was made during this reign, owing to the Tai-ping rebellion, during which King-te-chin was destroyed. The first Chinese war with England took place in 1860. The rebellion ended in the next reign.

Tung-Che (1862-1875).

With peace after the wars the manufacture of porcelain was resumed. Generally, the best pieces were copied from the antique, though a pale turquoise ground with decoration of flowers and butterflies was made for exportation. Sepia drawings showed some distinction, but there was no new departure of importance. This period is modern, and these later Emperors are only mentioned in order to bring the history up to date, and to call attention to the marks both on ordinary and seal character.

Kwang-Shiu (1875- ).

In the present reign much more importance has been given to the improvement of porcelain, which is largely made for export, high prices being obtained for imitations which are sold as antiques. The largest customer is the United States of America. The intense conservatism of the Chinese has been largely broken down by the influence of outside pressure. The almighty dollar holds the field. Yet, if it is still true that "for ways that are dark and tricks that are vain," "the heathen Chinee" is "peculiar," he holds no monopoly of such qualities. Western civilisation runs him close. On the other hand, the honour of a Chinese in trade is generally of a high standard, and the people have a natural instinct for artistic decoration, which has come to them as the legacy of ages past. And with this power they have, too, an unlimited supply of the very finest kaolin. Let us hope that happier times will bring back the glories of the past.

CHAPTER XIII
CHINESE WHITE PORCELAIN

M. Gasnault, the friend and pupil of M. Jacquemart, has put on record the results of their united work in the Museum at Limoges. The collector is able to see how he has tried to reconcile and combine the elements of a complete history of Oriental china, how he has collected specimens of all the manufactures, even the smallest, how Oriental porcelain holds the first place in the collection, being represented by most remarkable specimens of industry which in the Celestial Empire to-day is on the decline, after having had a brilliant career through so many ages, that it seemed as if nothing could have led to its failure.

If the Chinese have not yet returned to that state where they have forgotten entirely the art of making porcelain, at least they have lost the secret of those admirable productions—the forms so pure, the glazes so marvellous, the enamels so sparkling, the decoration so diversified, and the paintings so exquisite—which remained with us as monuments of an age when there must have been such art in the Ceramic world as has never been seen since. It will be advantageous to say something about the collections at Limoges and the lessons we may learn from them. The first place in the collection is given to the white china known throughout the world as "blanc de chine." This kind of porcelain was highly esteemed in France, and the Oriental artists and potters from a material which seemed to offer but little resource proceeded to work wonders. By the side of the small sacrificial cups destined for religious uses with the glassy glaze and a tone which recalls that of wax or ivory, in the form of the horn of the rhinoceros or of the flowers of the lotus, which was the plant pre-eminently sacred, one is able to admire examples perfect in execution of which the texture is so thin and fine that it seems dangerous even to touch them. The greater part is decorated with ornaments in white or in white slip, which by a few simple strokes, or by a delicate tracery, almost inconceivably beautifies the limited surface. Garlands and detached bouquets of flowers have been engraved upon the wet or the dry clay so finely—indeed, so exquisitely, that they cannot be seen unless held up to the light. Here the sacred dragon winds round the cup as if he wished to defend it from profane hands, and a Buddhist god only appears when a coloured liquid is poured into the cup, which then shows up the lines, before invisible, engraved in the paste.

Again, we find little bottles decorated with dragons and symbolical dogs of FÔ or Buddha cut deeply into the paste with a patience and an art unequalled in the productions of the Western Hemisphere. The statuettes of the gods and goddesses are also made in this white porcelain, amongst whom is one to whom we have before referred, Kwan-Yin, a mysterious being, the personification of mercy and goodness, who protects the sailors and saves them from shipwreck, who takes pity on those who suffer in hell and intercedes for them. She also gives children to those who are sterile.

Kwan-Yin has many attributes and emblems. Sometimes she has a diadem on her head ornamented with images of Buddha, or she rests seated on a throne of lotus in memory of the miraculous bridge which the gods constructed to enable her to cross the sea. The god of riches is often found as a white statuette, so is Poutai, the god of contentment, with a broad smile and round, uncovered stomach; Cheou, or Chow, the god of longevity, with an enormous bald head. Other figures of emperors and empresses are all of the same type, with the accompanying Ho-Ho birds.

Amongst the finest white porcelain is one kind having a hard and compact paste which lends itself easily to the mould, but is not suitable to the turning wheel. Nearly all the pieces of this ware are moulded into figures, incense burners, &c., and on looking into the interior the roughness and unevenness of the paste can be easily seen, even the marks left by the fingers of the workmen are quite plain, whilst the bottom always preserves the imprint of the canvas on which these pieces are placed after having been moulded. Then there is a white biscuit class, very rare, often having two walls or divisions, of which the outer one only is biscuit, reticulated or pierced with a fine network or trellis of various patterns, through which the interior wall can be seen. Amongst the trellis many Chinese characters are to be found, such as the emblem of longevity, the mark called Cheou, Chow, or Show. We shall have more to say of reticulated porcelain later on, but here we may mention that the reticulation on the outer wall is often elaborate, and the cover glazes give a variety of colours equal to that found upon ordinary china. The whole white porcelain family, whether we consider the beautiful creamy ivory ware, or the dead white, or the blue tinged white, is rarely marked, and when a mark is used generally it is a seal character moulded or cut in the paste. A very rare form of decoration is met with in white, but only occasionally. The surface is covered with minute white points like the points shown in shagreen, only it is not green, but white. Such china has been termed "chair de poule," or chicken skin. It may be noticed that these points are not enamelled, either because they were applied upon the glaze or because the enamel ran off them in the firing.

CHAPTER XIV
SINGLE OR SELF-COLOUR GLAZES

Following the white in order is the remarkable series of single colour glazes of various hues, beginning with the sea-green or Celadon, which is a pale green, or even a greyish green; and the yellow, especially the Imperial yellow, which is reserved for the Emperors of the Tsing dynasty; camellia-green like the leaves of that plant, painted in proper colours; light brown, a bright colour with quite a metallic lustre, was known as "feuille morte," or dead leaf colour. So copper-reds give various self-colours such as haricot, various flambÉs, and through a long range it reaches eventually a pure black. Then there are the blues, covering a range no less varied and interesting. Turquoise-blue, a tint which can only be obtained by applying it upon the biscuit china which has already passed through the kiln; the other blues, fouettÉ, soufflÉ, trempÉ, are brushed on, blown on, or dipped according to the method used in applying the colour glaze. Another way of applying the glaze was by its being powdered on through a fine gauze or dabbed on by means of a wet swab dipped in the colour which was to be used as the single colour glaze.

The purples as glazes are no less rich in variations, and in these tints the Chinese have never been rivalled. These self-colour pieces are decorated with symbolical figures or sacred animals, whilst flowers and inscriptions from the sacred books are found as a decoration in gold, which unfortunately lies upon the glaze and is more or less easily removed by hard wear. Again, similar designs are engraved in the paste, or modelled in relief and painted with such colours as are able to resist the temperature of the furnace. Many pieces have spaces reserved in white for further decoration, and sometimes the decoration is executed in white slip on the paste itself after its first firing has brought it to the biscuit state. These lovely single colour glazes are certainly amongst the finest Oriental specimens of porcelain which are worthy of the collector's attention; their softness, their brilliancy, their range of colour alike entitle them to a high place in any scheme of decorative treatment either in the home or on the collector's shelves. We call them china or porcelain vases, &c., and in that we are only following the Chinese usage, though the colour glaze is often so thick as to hide the material or body of the paste altogether. The thickness prevents any transmission of light; they have an opaque more or less coarse clay white or red body, and amongst our English products would be classified as stoneware. But the colour is the thing, and here we shall repeat ourselves a little, because it is necessary to really understand not alone what the colours are, but generally the order of their invention. The oldest colour was, as we have said, Celadon, or sea-green, which reached a high state of perfection about 1500. No doubt there are many Celadon pieces of great antiquity still awaiting identification. It was in the Seuen-tih period of the Ming dynasty that this Celadon became a famous product. The porcelain is very thick, and to this thickness it owes its preservation. Like the English ironstone china, it stands hard wear. All the Persians and the Turks value Celadon not for its intrinsic beauty, but because they thought it to be infallible as a test for poison in their food.

The yellow glaze is the colour adopted by the present Tsing dynasty as the Imperial colour. Fine specimens covered with yellow may then be regarded as having been destined principally for the use of the Emperors, but it does not follow that the use of this colour was proscribed in the decoration, either as a yellow or as a partial tint. Blue was one of the highly esteemed colours as well as one of the earliest. We have dealt with blue as an under-glaze decoration. It was not alone used for decorative purposes in drawings of figures, birds, animals, foliage, and landscape, but it was used in various forms as a body colour either on the biscuit itself, before glazing, for with the glaze as a self-colour, as a Celadon, in fact—that is, the blue was applied in the glaze or in the enamel.

We read that in 954 A.D. the Emperor Chin-Tsung ordered some vases to be made which should be "blue as the sky after rain when seen between the clouds," and it is said that his celebrated porcelain was of this blue, fine like a looking-glass, thin as paper, and giving a sound like a musical stone, the only defect being that the feet of the pieces were of a coarse yellow clay. Alas for the romantic story!

The most recent catalogue of the MusÉe Guimet at Paris, drawn up by the national experts with the assistance of such Chinese experts as were available, states that the story is all a mistake. The word which was translated "blue" should have been translated "green," which brings us back again to Celadon.

During the Sung dynasty (960-1279 A.D.) it appears that a fine red was discovered from which porcelain was made resembling chiselled red jade. This may be the celebrated "sang de boeuf," which is red, but, as we have seen, red with qualifications.

The purple or lilac glaze before referred to seems to have been made quite as early as the Sung dynasty, but with this, as with all the other glazes, colour alone is no indication of age.

About the year 1600 there lived that famous potter called Chow, whose fame was obtained by his excellence in skilfully imitating ancient vases. All the records that have come to us show very clearly that from the earliest times the potters were in the habit of copying the works of their predecessors. So well was this continually done that they were able to impose upon the best experts of their own country.

The brown glazes, according to PÈre d'Entrecolles in a letter dated 1712, were at that time quite recent inventions, and he applied the same remarks to the coffee-colour glazes. The black glaze has been noted. It has several varieties—the dull black itself, the dull black glazed over with green so as to make a bright black giving a green tinge only at the edges, and the Tsing black, which is an uncommon brilliant black familiarly known as mirror black.

There are many other self-colours or single glazes to which fanciful names are given. We have referred to "clair de lune" and the peach bloom. It is very doubtful whether there is any real value in the names themselves, so we advise our readers to examine specimens in the Museums, when such colours as liver colour, pigeon's blood, crushed strawberry, &c., will be found to be purely arbitrary. Perhaps the widest term applied to these variegated self-colours with a single glaze is splashed or shot silk. These various mottled or splashed glazes are named by the Chinese Yao-pien, by the French flammÉ or flambÉ. They have curious yet very beautiful veinings like flames of a fire, hence the name given to them by the French. One colour runs into the other in the most capricious and yet in the most charming manner. The first results were no doubt accidental, but soon experience gave certainty to the master mind of the potter, who was able to define and measure the combination of the various metallic oxides which would give him exactly the colouration he desired. The glaze of these pieces was usually applied upon the dried vessel by dipping or brushing or powdering, or, as some say, by blowing on with a tube. Or, again, it may have been a combination of these processes. The potter now had the means of producing an endless variety of splashing by the proper application of the prepared glazes: of violet and blue; of turquoise passing into green; of sea-green, brown, and blue; of maroon, green, and white; of, in fact, any colours within the range of his knowledge. He only had to be sure of the furnace. He had to know how his metallic oxides would combine under the action of heat. The glaze upon vessels having intricate designs in relief was applied only after the potter was sure that the pot in its biscuit state was suitable and correct in form. With most ornaments the danger of damage was thus considerably reduced. When the biscuit was withdrawn from the kiln the coloured glaze could be easily applied before the second firing took place. We have noticed that a much lower temperature was needed in the second firing and that the heat of a muffle-kiln would suffice. As in the case of the single glazes, a number of fanciful names have been applied to the ware, such as tiger-skin, iron rust, &c.

The process of decoration by blowing is said to produce a curious colouring. Take, for instance, red blown on blue. Pieces so decorated appear to be covered with a soft violet glaze, but on examination it will be found that the opaque blue is sown all over with minute red rings formed as a network resembling the finest lace. By the use of a simple magnifying-glass these rings can be easily traced. It seems difficult to produce such a marvellous decoration, and yet it is quite simple. The colour blown on that is the red, which is driven with force sufficient to form minute bubbles, which burst by the heat of the kiln, and by their bursting form little rings varying from the size of a pin's head to that of a pea.

It will be well to give just a little time to a summary of the colours which are used on Oriental porcelain of all kinds, first in the under-glaze blue and red, second in the single colour glazes, including all those which are known by the terms splashed, variegated, transmuted, or flammÉ or flambÉ. Preserving the same order set out in the colour enamels which are used in over-glaze decorations, we find that the blacks, as before stated, were three in number—a common dull black, a mirror or metallic black, and the first of these covered by a thin transparent green glaze, so as to make a shining black. The dull black was produced from manganese which had some impurities in it, whilst the mirror black was made of manganese having cobalt in it mixed with white glaze and an earth containing iron.

The various greens, such as the dark green or gros vert, sea-green or Celadon, apple-green, emerald-green, pea-green, cucumber, and snake-skin were all derived from iron, copper, and a little cobalt.

The many shades of blue—dark blue and that peculiar tint known as mazarine, powder-blue, sapphire-blue, sky-blue, turquoise-blue, peacock-blue, "clair de lune," and kingfisher-blue—were all secured from cobalt and copper mixed in various proportions.

In dealing with the important red family we have to distinguish between the reds derived from copper and those derived from iron and from gold. The range of tints is very extensive. Those derived from copper give the more or less fanciful names of "sang-de-boeuf," "sang de poulet," "sang de pigeon," crimson, crushed strawberry, maroon, liver colour, and that curious tint known as peach bloom or peach blow. The reds secured from iron are vermillion, the well-known coral and the tomato tints. From gold, those beautiful shades of colour to which we have referred as being crowning triumphs of the Yung-ching and Keen-lung periods were procured. These, known as ruby, rose, and pink, were really covering a large range of colours from a very faint pink to a red purple.

The yellows have a no less extended range. At the head of the list we find Imperial yellow, then citron or lemon-yellow, eel-skin yellow, straw, canary, mustard, orange, and sulphur-yellow. Thus we see the yellows vary from a faint tinge of that colour to a strong shade which seems to include a little red. All these yellows were derived from antimony, and the variation was largely secured by the addition of iron.

The next class, the brown colour, was derived from iron or from clay in which iron in various proportions was present. These browns include various shades such as bronze, chestnut, chamois, chocolate, coffee, "cafÉ-au-lait," dead leaf—"morte feuille"—old gold.

The colours on English china for the purposes of contrast are given next. They were derived from oxides of various metals in various proportions. The blacks are secured from cobalt, nickel, manganese, iron, and chromium. The greens are variously derived; the yellow-green and the emerald-green are secured from chromium and sodium; the blue-green or celest from chromium, cobalt, silicon, and zinc; whilst other greens are derived from copper and chromium.

Blues come from cobalt and silicon, except the mat blue, which was procured from cobalt, lime, and zinc. The reds were made from gold and iron, which secured many shades of those colours. The blacks were derived from chromium, iron, and manganese. Another class of European colours—the purples—came from cobalt, chromium, tin, and calcium.

CHAPTER XV
CHINESE CRACKLE

The crackle porcelain is a distinct class, though it will be found that many of the pieces having a single glaze are also crackled. They are covered with a clay or enamel which having been burnt in the kiln is taken out and subjected to the action of a current of cold air, or they are dipped in cold water, so that by unequal contraction cracks are formed with a regularity which, although in the first place accidental, became, in the skilful hands of the Chinese, science. Small crackles like the herring's roe, and large crackles like the ice cracks, could be produced by the potter as he chose. The cracks were filled with Indian ink, red or black, which made them stand out clearly. By further burning, possibly at a lower temperature, the entire surface seems to be covered with a clear glaze quite transparent, which to the touch offers no unequalities of surface. These wonderful potters have so far pushed this unique form of decoration, never successfully imitated in Europe, that it became one of the most important and striking means of decoration. Some of their work in this direction is marvellous and shows successive bands of enamel or glaze, crackled, self-colour and white all in one piece. Other pieces show a crackled network of two tints. Some of our English potters are making good attempts to imitate the fine old Chinese "famille verte," and surely for crackled porcelain there is still inspiration to be drawn from the East. The glaze was of white or coloured; the body was somewhat coarse in paste, resembling red or white stoneware. History takes us back to the Sung dynasty, when this kind of ware was first known, and the accidental discovery was converted into an exact method of working. A pretty form of crackle resembles the scales of a trout, and is by the French called truitÉ. All the colours that were employed as single glazes in that class seem to have been similarly employed as crackle glazes, with the possible exception of red, which did not lend itself to this process; all the Celadon shades and the blues, including turquoise-blue. The most celebrated crackle is that known as apple-green crackle. This ware has, in addition to the beautiful effect of the crackling, a lovely soft tint of green, which was applied as the glaze.

CHAPTER XVI
BLUE UNDER THE GLAZE. NANKIN BLUE

Many collectors are immensely attracted by what is known as the old blue and white. It is such a widely distributed product, extending over a long series of reigns. We noted before that it reached its highest excellence in the Kang-he period. It was at first reserved for the Court, for Emperors and high dignitaries, but since Kang-he's reign blue and white may be said to belong to all dates, and the blue and white ginger jars of the present time which may be bought for one or two guineas show how the demand has been a constant one throughout the whole of the time. At a very early period after the Dutch had imported this blue and white from China their potters set about imitating it and produced the fine old blue and white delft which is now valuable, but there is no specimen of delft which reaches anything like the price of the old Chinese blue and white from which it was copied. The honorific inscriptions, the sacred emblems, the immortals and their attendants were quite meaningless to the mind of the Dutch potter, just as they were to the Italian, who was also an Oriental copyist. To the Oriental the decoration of each piece meant something, something it may be of their history or of their religion. High thoughts were set out as inscriptions, and inspirations were given by the story on the vase or dish, which when represented on a European copy became only a scheme of decoration, or at its best a germ from which an original scheme of native work might have its birth. So the Dutch, though they at first made delft ware in servile imitation of Chinese patterns, soon saw their way to utilise purely Dutch designs and with these to produce work as fine as that which they had made under the inspiration of the Chinese model.

At King-te-chin, the classical home of porcelain, a city with 3,000 kilns, the best of the blue and white was made; and although there is a large class called Nankin blue which must not be neglected, the latter, in decoration, is immensely inferior to the products of the Imperial factories. It is quite certain that there were many other factories besides those at King-te-chin which produced porcelain, but history leaves few records of them, so that it would be quite fair to include Nankin blue as a product of King-te-chin perhaps decorated at Nankin. It is quite interesting to note how at first this blue and white, now so valued, was not esteemed by Europeans with the exception of the Dutch. Much of it was redecorated on the glaze and the pattern burnt in so as to hide the decoration.

CHAPTER XVII
CLOBBER WARE, OR REDECORATED PORCELAIN

Many lovely specimens of blue and white with the Kang-he marks, with the double rings or with the leaf symbol inside the double rings under the glaze, genuine specimens of old Kang-he, have been irretrievably spoilt by being plastered over with thick enamels of red, green, blue, &c. The old English word "clobber" means a paste to conceal cracks in shoes, and the pity of the clobber decoration was that the enamels, having been burnt in, are to all intents and purposes irremovable. Before me, as I write, is a Kang-he vase with a leaf symbol within the double circle, showing a real old Kang-he blue and white production, but unfortunately the clobberer has plastered coloured enamel over the blue decoration, now faintly visible, and only where a transparent green or pink glaze has been applied; the rest is absolutely hidden by opaque glazes of rose and yellow, white, lilac, and blue, until the character of the Oriental piece has been entirely destroyed. The number of pieces so spoiled seemed to indicate that there was a demand for clobber ware, or that, as we noted, blue and white was not popular, or that it was imported for redecoration in the absence of white ware which could be used for the same purpose. Chinese porcelain in its white state was freely imported into Europe and decorated in the factories of Holland, France, Germany, and Italy, as well as in this country.

Every one who collects china is familiar with the so-called Lowestoft decoration, not a thousandth part of which ever saw Lowestoft; in fact, that researches which have been made at Lowestoft indicate that the manufacture was soft paste resembling early Bow and Worcester. Of course, some white Oriental china may have been decorated there, though no traces of broken hard paste seem to have been found in the excavations. It may be that Bow, Chelsea, and Worcester did decorate white Oriental china, but the information we have on this point is singularly weak and inconclusive. The clobber decoration is not alone in enamel colours or gold, but even lacquer is used for the same purpose. It is needless to say that the change is never to the advantage of the piece, and often the under-glaze blue may be seen peeping, as it were, reproachfully from beneath the overlying transparent enamel.

Another, but similar name, is sometimes applied to this style of decoration. It is said that an enameller named Globber—hence Globber ware—redecorated white and blue porcelain with enamels at Soho during the latter part of the eighteenth century.

CHAPTER XVIII
RETICULATED PORCELAIN

The porcelain called reticulÉes comes into the category of blue and white because some of it was decorated with blue under the glaze. The pieces have double walls, of which the outside one is pierced with a pattern, often a network of exceeding fineness, a lace-work in porcelain through which may be seen the exquisite blue design upon the internal wall. It seems just as if the potter had two pieces made to fit at the top and bottom only. On the foundation piece—the internal wall—he expended the art of decoration in blue. On the other piece, even more care must have been shown in cutting the clay into delicate tracery, so minute as to be marvellous. Then the fitting of the two walls together was completed, and finally the firing process took place. Such pieces are pre-eminent in curiosity, in interest and in skill, and their variations are wonderful. Some are only blue and white, some are blue and white with reserves in biscuit. All had the outside wall pierced with a pattern. We are giving as illustrations two magnificent pieces of reticulated porcelain, but these are coloured with enamel colours.

CHAPTER XIX
DECORATED WITH COLOURED ENAMELS

The section of porcelain which deals with decoration in colours is a revelation of the ingenuity, art, and industry of the Chinese potter. The difference between the Chinese productions and European china are striking; in fact, they cannot be compared. With the Chinese, the porcelain manufacture was a matter of custom, almost of religion. The gift of a piece of porcelain marked every solemn ceremony—the new year, the birthday, the marriage never passed without the presentation of a cup or vase which bore an inscription or a symbol of good wishes, or a character meaning either longevity or earthly happiness. Indeed, the visitor to the Chinese home could see not only cups and vases, but teapots, dishes, and plates with varied decoration and brilliant colouring, each telling its own story. Sometimes the teapots were made in the form of Chinese characters. On some pieces were the familiar scenes of the home life or of the public life which give us glimpses of the manners of a people, still imperfectly known and less understood, who for centuries opposed the strongest barriers to the curiosity of Europeans. On other pieces were depicted subjects drawn from the sacred legends or from the principal scenes of well-known wars.

Then the birds and animals each with its meaning, each a symbol! The peach blossom, the lotus, the dragon of the Emperors or of the princes appear side by side with the kylin, the Korean lion or dog of FÔ, the sacred Ho-Ho birds, or Fong-Hoang, &c. On the plates and dishes specimens of the Oriental flowers were spread out in all the glory of vivid colour—peonies and chrysanthemums, lotus and azalea, with insects and butterflies no less gorgeous and certainly no less emblematical. Other specimens had for decoration rocks and trees with birds of rich plumage, and fishes with scales of golden hue.

Amongst these dazzling enamel colours four are most attractive and seem to dominate over all the others. Arranging them in families and placing them in order of age, we should take the black family, the green family, the yellow family, and the rose family. These all show the brilliant tones of a perfected production, and singularly enough they were, with one exception, ascribed to the Tsing dynasty; they began to be made in the Kang-he period of that dynasty. Such was the generally received opinion. Further investigation has shown that, with the exception of the "famille rose," most of these were made during the Ming dynasty, and attention is being drawn to this fact more and more as time reveals many undoubtedly fine pieces of the older dynasty. It may be objected that these fine pieces are later Chinese copies with the old dates, and the objection has certainly some grounds, but we must remember that the invention of translucid porcelain and its decoration was quite fabulous with regard to its antiquity, and we must further bear in mind that the regulations of the social and political life of the Chinese, the organisation of the family, which scarcely permitted the son to follow any other profession than that of his father, perpetuated the trades of a calling or trade. The routine practice, if this expresses the idea better, forbade all initiative in the mere worker. Inspiration creating new forms and colours depended upon the genius who presided over the Imperial manufactories. These and other causes brought this result, that art and industry rested almost stationary, reproducing the same types, the same forms, the same decoration, which responded to the demands, habits and customs of a people whose needs scarcely varied. Under these conditions, which furnish food for reflection, when we inquire, "Is this old china or not?" we must note that the mere inspection of hard porcelain made of kaolin, which is almost unalterable with time, will never reveal to the most expert the date of its creation. It is true that certain pieces bear an inscription indicating this or that date, but the number of these is very limited, for the use of date marks does not appear to have been adopted by the Chinese before the end of the fifteenth century. Although it may be objected that these marked specimens are later Chinese copies, and that similarly decorated specimens have simply the old dates recopied, it is quite possible that many of them which are thought to have been imitations may be really old. It will be difficult even for the expert to be certain in his differentiation between fine old Ming and Kang-he.

Coming in the same period as the three Kang-he enamel colours are the two underground glaze grounds powder-blue and coral-red. True powder-blue is Kang-he, but it has been copied, and badly, right on to our own times, whilst in coral red—"rouge de fer"—the later Keen-lung specimens can fairly be said to rival those of the earlier period. It is doubtful whether this rivalry would apply to any other class of porcelain.

A.—The Black Family—"Famille Noir."

This magnificent production, of which we give examples in our illustrations, is usually ascribed to Kang-he, possibly it may be earlier. Its characteristic quality was a black ground covered with almost invisible green glaze. The body of these pieces was decorated with flowers in yellow, green, and white, and with butterflies. A common form of decoration—if any can be called common in dealing with such a rare product—was that the panels were decorated with emblems of the seasons. A tree of peony with green, white, and grey blossoms appears to us to be fantastic, but the peony in China grew to the height of 12 ft. The chrysanthemum with flowers of similar colours formed a second panel, the guelder rose with green and white blossoms made the third, whilst the fourth had the lotus flower with tall green and grey flowers growing at the foot of green rocks at the edge of a green lake. The prunus blossom in white or pale green was often used for floral decoration, and yellow finches with green wings, white storks, white butterflies and bees are often found. So, too, is a green-faced dragon with a long brilliant green body in coils, sporting itself in mid-air. Reference to our illustrations will bring out other forms of decoration treated at some length.

B.—The Green Family—"Famille Verte."

The green family in its finest form is undoubtedly a Kang-he production, but all of the decoration was not in green. Brilliant enamel colours were combined with gilding, and flowers such as the white chrysanthemum, the lotus, the prunus are frequently found in conjunction with black speckled diapers and large panels decorated with various subjects with small reserves decorated with fishes, crabs, and prawns. Figure painting in the green family is not uncommon. Si-Wang-Mu on the borders of the Lake of Gems, mounted warriors in a battle scene or simply marching, and various other military subjects are not uncommon. The ancient pine-tree and the peony are frequently met with, but it is the green, one of the most beautiful enamel colours ever used, which constitutes the attraction in this "famille verte" class, to which family belong many of the figures now known as Ming figures, such as the dog of FÔ, having a white body with yellow, green and gold protuberances, green head and green, grey, and red mane and tail. The bases of such figures are usually in diamond or other diapers, which may be further decorated with a single red peach blossom. The earlier Ming figures as a rule have the flesh, face, arms, and hands unglazed.

C.—The Powdered Blue, with Enamel Colours.

The powder or powdered blue family has been referred to already and the manner in which the blue is applied has been explained. Though this colour, like the others, had perhaps its rise, and its greatest perfection, in the Kang-he period, yet many specimens of extremely fine quality are ascribed to Yung-ching and Keen-lung. There are, however, no specimens of true powder-blue that belong to any other than the Kang-he period. The art was evidently lost, and when it was attempted, in the reign of the Emperor Keen-lung, the nearest approach was what is known as mazarine blue, which is entirely different, being much heavier in tone and not powdered, and it is these pieces which have "famille-rose" decoration, and this places beyond all doubt the period to which they belong. Where the powder-blue has reserves, as is almost always the case, they may be filled with decoration in blue under the glaze, or with "famille verte" applied over the glaze. Or again, and in the later periods of Yung-ching and Keen-lung, the various shaped white reserves may have "famille rose" decoration. Similar flowers were used in decorating these pieces in reserves, as we have mentioned before. A general test of the older pieces is the presence of the joo-e head, which either ornaments the rims in small panels or is the shape adopted for the large panels. These are decorated with garden landscapes with figures, and official emblems in various colours such as green, yellow, grey, red, and even other blue enamel colours. Other scenes represent the god of longevity presenting the red peach of long life to a child held by a person of rank. Generally, however, the subjects used have decorations varying comparatively little, although the treatment of these subjects differs considerably in the colour scheme.

D.—Green and Yellow Family—"Famille Jaune."

An elegant combination is found in this early product, where the two prominent colours are green and yellow. Sometimes the body may have a black ground covered with almost invisible green glaze, but the main decoration is green, aubergine, and yellow, although other colours such as red, especially red triangle work, is frequently found. These pieces probably originated in the Ming period, but were recopied later. They have reserves such as those mentioned before, decorated with Buddhist emblems or with subjects such as a prince and princess of the Imperial house walking in a garden with two Ho-Ho birds, and a landscape where ladies are conversing and men are in attendance. Amongst the symbols are to be found the official one of the branch of coral with the peacock's feathers. The diapers are very varied and the joo-e-head decoration is frequently found. The frontispiece gives a good idea of this form of decoration, and its description should be noted.

In speaking of the rare examples, yellow-ground, as well as black and green, could be ranked quite in the first order; in fact, they are almost the rarest kind. Specimens of these families were made at the end of the Ming period, and it is a very moot point to-day whether the fine examples, which we know, belong to the end of the Ming or the beginning of the Kang-he.

E.—Coral Red Ground.

If there is another class which deserves mention it is that having a coral red ground thickly powdered it may be with white chrysanthemum leaves and flowers, decorated with joo-e-head ornaments or ornamented with deep rose, grey and white, yellow and white, pale blue and white, prunus blossom powdered upon a golden iced diaper, the emblem of the coming spring. This coral red ground—"rouge de fer"—differs from all the others in this class because it is an under-glaze decoration. It is essentially a Kang-he production, although some very fine specimens have the Keen-lung mark.

The reader has no doubt noticed the rivalry between these periods, and the values of coral red specimens are more affected by quality than perhaps by age.

F.—The Rose Family—"Famille Rose."

We noted that the rose enamel was used in decoration by Yung-ching. The same rose decoration was continued by Keen-lung, which had an especial form of decoration consisting of the rose and white peony with the prunus—the so-called hawthorn. Frequently, too, there is a swastika trellis. We have dealt somewhat fully with the ruby-back plates as a branch of the rose family. This ruby and peach blossom rose ground was applied to vases with very telling effect. As, in the black family, the ground was a black covered with an almost invisible green glaze, so in this family we get a peach blossom rose ground often powdered with pale blue, yellow, grey and white chrysanthemum blossoms. The reserves are often fan-shaped, and the decoration in these reserves consists of the usual subjects or emblems in brilliant enamel colours. Similar flowers to those noted before as the emblems of the seasons are frequently found. These include pale rose and blue and white peony, pale rose and white rose, peach blossom, chrysanthemums, the oleander with single rose and white prunus blossom. These rose pieces are extremely elegant and very rare. They date from the Yung-ching period, in which they reached their highest perfection, under Keen-lung the standard of excellence was nearly as high.

ROSE FAMILY—"FAMILLE ROSE."

Egg-Shell Porcelain. Ruby-Back Plates.