Page 391 - Oriental Series Japan and China, Brinkly

MONOCHROMATIC WARES

brilliant of Chinese monochromes. Genuinely fine
specimens have become exceedingly scarce, though

their production was continued with success until the

end of the Chia-tsing era (1796-1821). They are

close-grained, hard porcelain, with soft lustrous glaze

of perfectly uniform turquoise blue, and having deco-

rative designs dragons and phoenixes engraved

in the pate. Crackle is absent and the technique is

unimpeachable. It is important to notice these two

points the nature of the pate and the absence of

crackle if the amateur desires to distinguish be-

tween the very choicest specimens and those of sec-

ond-rate quality. The variety having fine porcelain
glaze of
pate covered with uniform " "
king-fisher

delicate tint with designs carefully engraved in the

biscuit, ranks among Imperial Wares (Kuan-yao) in

Chinese eyes. An inferior though scarcely less beau-

tiful description has a net-work of fine crackle and

comparatively soft biscuit with a timbre resembling

that of faience rather than of porcelain proper. In

this kind engraved designs are exceptional, but deco-

ration in high relief occurs not infrequently. Some-

times the uniformity of the surface is broken by

metallic spots, large or small, producing a highly

pleasing effect. Turquoise glazes are also found

upon reddish brown stone-ware, thin but compara-

tively coarse. Such specimens are either to be classed

as third-rate examples of Chien-lung and Chia-tsing

manufactures, or to be attributed to the workshops

of Taou-Kwang (1821 1851) and subsequent eras.

Many of them possess great decorative attractions.

It should be explained that in insisting upon the

absence of crackle the intention is merely to note a
feature of the one and only variety " "
of king-fisher