Page 483 - Chinese pottery and porcelain : an account of the potter's art in China from primitive times to the present day

Forgeries and Imitations 307

are those which have been redecorated. I do not refer to the
clobbered ^ and retouched polychromes or to the powder blue and
mirror black on which the gilding has been renewed, but to the
devilish ingenuity which takes a piece of lightly decorated K'ang
Hsi porcelain, removes the enamelling, and even the whole glaze
if the original ornament has been in underglaze blue, and then
proceeds to clothe the denuded surface in a new and resplendent
garb of rich enamel. Naturally, it is the most sumptuous style of
decoration which is affected in these frauds, such as the prunus
tree and birds in a ground of black, green, or yellow enamel on the
biscuit ; and the drawing, execution and colours are often sur-
prisingly good. The enormous value of this type of vase, if suc-
cessful, repaj'^s the expense and trouble involved in the truquage ;

and the connoisseur who looks at the base for guidance is \lisarmed
because that critical part has been undisturbed, and has all the
points of a thoroughbred K'ang Hsi piece. If, however, his sus-
picion has been aroused by something unconvincing in the design
or draughtsmanship, he will probably find upon minute examina-
tion some indication of the fraud, some trace of the grinding off

of the glaze which the enamels have failed to cover, suspicious
passages at the edge of the lip where the old and new surfaces join,
or traces of blackening here and there which are rarely absent from
a refired piece. But if the work is really successful, and no in-

genuity or skill is spared to make it so, his suspicions may not be

aroused until too late. Frauds of this kind belong to the most
costly types, and concern the wealthy buyers. The poorer col-
lectors have to deal with small deceits, the adding of a famille veiie
border to a bowl or dish, the retouching of defective ornament, the
rubbing of modern surfaces to give them fictitious signs of wear,
the staining of new wares with tobacco juice, and other devices
easily detected by those who are forewarned. Against all these
dangers, whether they be from wilful frauds or from innocent
imitations, I can only repeat that the collector's sole defence is
experience and a well-trained eye.

1 See p. 261.