CHINA
Chapter XIII
CHINESE PORCELAIN IN THE WEST
IN considering when Oriental keramic productions first made their way to Europe, the student naturally led to inquire at what epoch the term "porcelain" began to be employed in its present sense. The term itself was originally applied to a species of shell that did duty for money in various countries. Its subsequent use to denote keramic manufactures was due to the resemblance between the latter and the smooth semi-translucency of the well known shell. But at what epoch was this resemblance observed and perpetuated by the dual use of the word? According to MM. Brongnard and de Laborde, as quoted by M. du Sartel, throughout the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries the name "porcelain" was applied in France exclusively to vases, table utensils, and ornaments into the manufacture of which mother-of-pearl entered. But from the beginning of the sixteenth century, it began to be used also for the purpose of designating glazed pottery imported from China, which showed the same pearly whiteness as the shell. If this account be accepted, it would follow that Chinese keramic wares did not come to Europe until the sixteenth century; that is to say, until the middle of the Ming dynasty. M. du Sartel,
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