Page 450 - Chinese Porcelain Vol I, Galland

2 4 2 CHINESE PORCELAIN.

Japanese Beproductions.
The Japanese having acquired the art of making porcelain
from China, it is but natural that they should at times have
imitated the Chinese
styles, particularly when stimulated to
do so by demand for Europe. These reproductions may be
of and must be of on their merits.
any age, judged individually
As a rule, these imitations are most successful in the
Japanese
self-coloured pieces, and classes where the colour is under the
as in blue and white and ware ; but
glaze, peach many good
imitations are to be found in the polychrome sections. 16 It is
not safe, however, to conclude because a piece has spur-marks
that it must be of
Japanese origin.
French Beproductions.
Mention has been made of the continual of
reproduction
ancient which went on in of the
porcelains China, as also
of Chinese the
copying pieces by Japanese. Unfortunately,
no work of this sort would now be that omitted to
complete
notice the same process which is to-day being carried on in
Paris and elsewhere.
In the museum at Sevres, side by side in one of the glass
show-cases, stand two seven-bordered eggshell plates. The
attendant informs you one is genuine, the other a copy thereof,
painted to show the skill of their artists, and the visitor is
invited to which is which. This it seems to do
say impossible
merely by looking at the plates, but no attempt is made to
the back of the and that can see it is
disguise copy, by you
made of Sevres and not Chinese porcelain. On the face of
the the colours and are
plate painting exactly alike, although
examined in a north the of
it is said that, carefully light, pink
the copy is not quite as bright as that of the original.
What can be done in Sevres can be done equally well else-
where in Paris, and the copying of ancient works of art has
there become a regular trade, very great skill being displayed
not in the of the but in the of
only painting pieces, imitating
the backs or bases thereof. To begin with, the porcelain is
16 that have been for Chinese
The Japanese, knowing the big prices paid
peach-bloom and other monochromes, have set themselves bard at work to
— T. J. L.
obtain results, which have deceived a few inexperienced eyes.