Page 43 - Oriental Series Japan and China, Brinkly

EARLY WARES OF CHINA

faience, covered with three varieties of glaze, light
green, grey, and greenish white. These were ap-
parently of Chinese manufacture, and may, perhaps,
be regarded as genuine examples of the Yueh-yao of
the 'Tang dynasty, the principal varieties of which, as
stated above, are compared to jade and ice. Theories
founded on fragments of ware thus discovered are,

however, open to much doubt. More satisfactory

evidence is furnished by a book (Ruishu Zatsuyd-sho}
in which the ceremonials observed at the Japanese
Court during the ninth and tenth centuries are de-
scribed. There is seen a coloured plate showing
seven rice-bowls with covers (called ha-gatamey or
teeth-hardeners) which were used on the first three

days of the New Year. Nothing is said of the

exact nature of the ware, nor does the plate de-
termine it. But the glaze is light green a

celadon monochrome. Yet another and less un-

certain piece of testimony is furnished by a cele-

brated collection in the Shoso-in, at Nara, Japan.

In this collection are articles used in the Japanese

Imperial household between the years 709 and 784
A.D. Several keramic specimens of Chinese manu-

facture are included. They are faience. The ma-

jority have monochromatic celadon glaze, but some
have two glazes celadon and yellowish grey run

in tesselated or scolloped patterns. The pate is very

brittle, and has no pretensions whatever to be called
porcelain. Here then are unquestionably authentic
examples of Chinese ware potted during the Tang

dynasty. It may further be presumed that they are

fairly representative examples, inasmuch as a very
high standard of refinement was observed at the Jap-
anese Imperial Court, and ample facilities existed for

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