Page:Brinkley - China - Volume 1.djvu/297

jecture. A special kind of clay found at Ta-u-ling, and employed chiefly for glazing material, is said to have been often used for making biscuit by imitators of old-time ware, one reason for its selection being that it gave a peculiarly strong, durable pâte. This would indicate that the old-time ware referred to was of the céladon type, which is wholly different from the Ting-yao. As already seen, M. d'Entrecolles' account of biscuit made, wholly or partially, from steatite, indicates a product closely resembling the soft paste of blue-and-white Kai-pien ware. The same remark applies to Ting-yao porcelain, but unfortunately this point remains obscure. It is at all events certain that the potters of the Kang-hsi, Yung-ching, and Chien-lung eras yielded nothing to their Ming predecessors in their knowledge of materials and their skilful methods of combining them so as to produce both hard and soft pâtes of perfect quality. Their hard-paste white porcelain may be conveniently classified according the nature of its decoration—incised or in relief. In the choicest type of incised decoration, the designs—usually dragons, phœnixes, or floral sprays—are sunk in the biscuit so as to be almost imperceptible except by transmitted light. The glaze is of dazzling purity and lustre, conveying the impression of snow-white oil. The paste is fine as pipe-clay, and the timbre is sharp and clear. Nothing distinguishes this beautiful porcelain so much as the peculiar richness and unctuousness of its surface. The slightest symptom of an air-bubble, of pitting, of discontinuity, or of dulled lustre is a fatal mark of inferiority. This class of ware occurs chiefly in bowls, libation cups, and plates: the nature of the decoration is not well suited