Page 221 - Oriental Series Japan and China, Brinkly

PORCELAIN DECORATED

chingy which lasted only thirteen years (17231736).

So far as concerns blue-and-white porcelain, nothing
need be said of this era except that the manufacture
of all the varieties of the preceding reign was con-

tinued with undiminished success. The Ching-te-

chen factories were then under the direction of Nien,

of whom the Tao-lu records that he himself selected

materials for the imperial porcelains and personally
supervised the processes of the potters. Pieces thus
produced were said to be " of a high degree of fine-

ness and elegance," which verdict is unquestionably
endorsed by the experience of modern collectors, to

whom everything bearing the Yung-ching mark

Ta-Tsing Yung-ching nien chi is of beauty and value.

Nien, or Nien-Kung (the Sieur Nien) as he is com-
monly called, was unquestionably an artist of con-

spicuous ability. It will be seen by and by that under
his guidance the experts of Ching-te-chen manu-
factured monochromatic and polychromatic glazes of
great variety and remarkable quality, and that delicate
processes of enamel decoration (over the glaze) were

also carried to a high degree of excellence. The
wares of his era were called Nien-yao. Twice a
month quantities of them used to be forwarded to

Peking for imperial use, and at frequent intervals the
Emperor was solicited to convey his wishes to the

factories. Thus stimulated the keramic art could

scarcely fail to flourish. But it added nothing to the
catalogue of choice productions in respect of decora-

tion sous couverte.

In the absence of year-marks the connoisseur will

find it almost impossible to distinguish between Kang-

hsi and Yung-ching specimens of the classes now under
consideration. The quality of the pate is identical,

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