PORCELAIN DECORATED
about the place of the ware's origin, collateral evidence shows that they have kept tolerably accurate records of the dates when it came to their country. It need scarcely be said that the specimens of this highly decorative ware familiar to Western collectors belong to later periods than the curious little kogo so much treasured in Japan. These large brilliant, though somewhat crudely finished pieces date chiefly from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, though several are undoubtedly as old as the Wan-li (1573) or even the Chia-tsing (1522) era of the Ming dynasty. The difference between specimens from the factories of these eras and those from the Kang-hsi kilns is scarcely appreciable. The glazes of both are equally pure, lustrous, and brilliant, and their pâte equally hard. In general technique, however, the advantage is with the Kang-hsi ware. In proportion as later periods are reached, the biscuit becomes soft and friable, and the enamels lose their glossiness and depth.
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