Porcelain

Porcelain
Porcelain is a type of ceramics highly valued for its beauty and strength. It is often called china, or chinaware, because it was first made in China. Porcelain is characterized by whiteness, a delicate appearance, and translucence (ability to let light through).

Porcelain has been in use for over 4000 years in China. It is made from special white clay and fired at a temperature of 1280 degrees centigrade. There are a couple different ways in which these items are decorated. The most common today is molded, decorated, and glazed. Others are molding and enameled then re-fired. The third type is underglaze in blue and red. The Chinese have always been extremely proficient at porcelain work, and have produced numerous pieces that look like coral, glass, stone, and many other materials.

History of porcelain

Oriental porcelain
The Chinese probably made the first true porcelain during the Tang dynasty (618-907). The techniques for combining the proper ingredients and firing the mixture at extremely high temperatures gradually developed out of the manufacture of stoneware. During the Song dynasty (960-1279), Chinese emperors started royal factories to produce porcelain for their palaces. Since the 1300's, most Chinese porcelain has been made in the city of Jingdezhen.

For centuries, the Chinese made the world's finest porcelain. Collectors regard many porcelain bowls and vases produced during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing dynasty (1644-1912) as artistic treasures. Porcelain makers perfected a famous blue and white underglazed procelain during the Ming period. Painting over the glaze with enamel colors also became a common decorating technique at this time. During the Qing period, the Chinese developed a great variety of patterns and colors and exported porcelain objects to Europe in increasing numbers.

By the 1100's, the secret of making porcelain had spread to Korea and to Japan in the 1500's. Workers in these countries also created beautiful porcelain objects. A Japanese porcelain called Kakiemon was first produced during the 1600's. It features simple designs on a white background. Another well-known Japanese porcelain called Imari ware, or Arita, is famous for its dense decorations in deep blue and red.

European porcelain
As early as the 1100's, traders brought Chinese porcelain to Europe, where it became greatly admired. However, it was so rare and expensive that only wealthy people could afford it.

As trade with the Orient grew during the 1600's, porcelain became popular with the general public. The custom of drinking tea, coffee, and chocolate became widespread and created a huge demand for porcelain cups and saucers. European manufacturers responded by trying to make hard-paste porcelain themselves, but for a long time they failed to discover the secret. Nevertheless, some of their experiments resulted in beautiful soft-paste porcelain. The first European soft-paste porcelain was produced in Florence, Italy, about 1575.

By the 1700's, porcelain manufactured in many parts of Europe was starting to compete with Chinese porcelain. France, Germany, Italy, and England became the major centers for European porcelain production.

French porcelain
France became famous during the 1700's as the leading producer of soft-paste porcelain. The first factories were established at Rouen, St. Cloud, Lille, and Chantilly.

The most celebrated type of soft-paste porcelain was first produced at Vincennes in 1738. In 1756, the factory was moved to the town of Sevres. Its soft-paste porcelain became known as Sevres. The earliest Sevres had graceful shapes and soft colors. Sevres pieces produced from 1750 to 1770 were decorated with brilliant colors and heavy gilding. Many of these pieces had richly colored backgrounds and white panels painted with birds, flowers, landscapes, or people. Sevres is also noted for its fine figurines of biscuit (unglazed porcelain).

Beginning in 1771, a hard-paste porcelain industry developed near Limoges, where kaolin deposits had been discovered. By the 1800's, Limoges had become one of the largest porcelain centers in Europe. An American named David Haviland opened a porcelain factory at Limoges in 1842 to make tableware for the American market. Haviland porcelain features soft colors that blend together and small floral patterns.

German porcelain
A German chemist named Johann Friedrich Bottger discovered the secret of making hard-paste porcelain in 1708 or 1709. This discovery led to the establishment of a porcelain factory in Meissen in 1710. Meissen porcelain is sometimes called Dresden because Bottger first worked near the city. For nearly a century, it surpassed in quality all other hard-paste porcelain made in Europe.

The great success of Meissen porcelain can be partly attributed to the fine artists who decorated it. They painted the wares with an amazing variety of colors and designs. Johann Horoldt (or Herold), who became chief painter in 1720, produced beautiful Chinese and Japanese as well as European designs. Johann Kandler, who worked from about 1730 to 1770, is famous for his exquisite figures of animals and people.

Political disorder in Germany and competition from Sevres porcelain drove the Meissen factory into decline during the late 1700's. It continued to operate but did not make wares of the same artistic quality.

English porcelain
England is well known as the center for the production of bone china. Before the invention of bone china, the English manufactured fine soft-paste porcelain at Chelsea, Bow, and Derby. Most of this English porcelain was styled after Oriental and Continental designs.

Worcester porcelain, first produced in 1751, is one of the oldest and best English porcelains. During its early years, the Worcester factory produced soft-paste porcelain, much of it decorated with Chinese designs in blue underglaze. Since the 1760's, it has manufactured bone china in a wide variety of colors and patterns.

Josiah Spode developed a bone china paste that became the standard English paste in 1800. Spode china featured a large number of designs but was especially noted for its exotic birds.

Most of the famous English Wedgwood ware is not porcelain at all, but earthenware or stoneware. Nevertheless, its classical Greek figures and reliefs became enormously popular and had a great influence on porcelain designs throughout Europe.

Modern porcelain
Technical advances enabled the porcelain industry to produce porcelain in large quantities. Today, extensive porcelain making is carried out in the United States, Europe, and Japan. Some notable examples of fine contemporary porcelain are American Lenox, German Rosenthal, and Japanese Noritake.

Major Porcelain Capitals in China
China is the first nation to manufacture true porcelain in the world, as suggested by its name, china. And there are some towns are famous for their porcelain products for a long history and they are called the "Porcelain Capitals of China".

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