Page 618 - Chinese Porcelain Vol II, Galland

KWANG-SHIU.
498

KWANG-SHIU, 1875 to date.
DURING the present reign the Chinese have paid much
attention to the improvement of their porcelain, perhaps not so
much from the love of art as with the object of making large
it to at as and
profits, by selling foreigners high prices antique,
certainly many of their imitations are wonderfully good and
well calculated to deceive the unwary. America still draws
of for use from China, but little
supplies porcelain every day
is now received in Europe. The day, however, may come, if
the Chinese go the right way to work, when it will once more
become the fashion to use Chinese made services, although, of
course, a very high standard of excellence will be required to
compete with the finely finished wares now made on this
side.

Famille Verte.
Nos. 894, 895, 896. Famille verte vase, blue enamel.
Height, 18^ inches. No mark. This piece was purchased in the
East some odd and be taken
twenty years ago, may, perhaps,
as an example of what could be produced in the early part of
the The and
present reign. porcelain, general technique, glaze
are The enamels but in
good. very transparent, lacking depth
of colour, and seemingly apt to chip off. The yellows are poor,
and the reds of a brick colour, while the greens are thin ; the
aubergine is fairly good. But altogether, at a glance, you can
tell it is a modern piece.
"
The Emperor Ti was very fond of a stork, which he kept
to the neglect of the duties of government. He appointed an
officer to feed it, giving food for it as if for an official. His
councillors remonstrated with him without effect.
frequently
The show the stork
pictures being fed, and two faithful
ministers to the bird which wasted so
endeavouring destroy
much of their master's time."
In Nos. 895, 896 we have the destruction of the pampered
"
stork by means of book and sword magic (see du Halde," vol. i.
In No. 896 a man waves a sword, which a
p. H77). produces
cloud of smoke over the stork, in which it will probably
while the behind him has thrown the book
disappear, figure just
which has fallen in front of the bird. The and his
emperor