Page 41 - The art of the Chinese potter By Hobson

AN INTRODUCTION

eye and always harmonise with an artistic colour-scheme. Hence
their universal popularity not only to-day, but in bygone ages ;
specimens of celadon ware have been found in all parts of the world

—Java, Sumatra, the Philippines, Borneo, India, Persia, Arabia,

Egypt, and Zanzibar.
In Sung days the most important centre of celadon production

was a place called Lung Ch'uan, in the province of Chekiang,
where there were two brothers by name Chang. The elder brother

potted vessels the glaze of which was crackled and which go by

the name of Ko ware ; accredited specimens of this ware are

scarce. But specimens of the art of the younger brother and of

his school are not difficult to find ; we know of a number of wasters
dug up on the old kiln-site which enable us to recognise the ancient

descriptions recorded in Chinese literature.

The body is a grey porcellanous material which often exhibits a

red colour at the foot-rim where it has been exposed to the fire.

The glaze varies in colour from a definite green through shades

of blue-green to a dove-like grey ; in all cases there is a softness
of colour due to the fact that the glaze is not transparent. In the

later Ming celadons a more " glassy " appearance is noticeable

though the same range of colour tones is found.
The most prized celadon colour is an opaque blue- green or blue-

grey which sometimes goes by the name Kinuta, a term applied to
it by the Japanese and derived from a famous mallet-shaped 1 vase

with a glaze of this colour.

Some of the most beautiful of the Sung specimens owe their

charm entirely to shape and glaze effect, but others are decorated
by ornament in relief or by incised designs.

A curious effect is found in the so-called tobi seiji, or spotted

celadon, where irregular blotches of dark brown are set in the

Agreen glaze. fine example is seen on Plate LXXII.

The celadons which have been found the world over usually

consist of heavy plates and dishes or large vases and bowls ; these

went in former days by the title martabani ware. The name is
derived from the Gulf of Martaban on the shores of which lies the
town of Moulmein in Burma. The ware was largely re-exported

from this centre. In India these heavy plates are often called

ghori ware ; a name derived from the town of Ghoor on the Persian-

1 Kinuta means mallet or hammer*

II