THE RISE OF THE POTTERY INDUSTRY. 



163 



surface. This modeling was executed by Miss Josephine Day, a 

 sister-in-law and pupil of Mr. H. C. Robertson, and by Mr. Rob- 

 ertson himself. Being done by hand from original designs, no 

 duplicates were produced. On some of the hammered vases the 

 designs were cut into the surface and filled in with white clay, 

 forming a mosaic, the bases of the vessels being colored buff, 

 which offered a pleasing contrast through a semi-transparent 



Fm. 11. ^Inlaid, Hammered and Embossed 1'ottert. (Clielsea Keramic Art Works.) 



glaze. About the same time a variety of faience known as the 

 Bourg-la-Reine of Chelsea was produced, after the discovery of 

 the process of painting on the surface of the vessel with colored 

 clays and covering with a transparent glaze, on the principle of 

 the Limoges faience. 



Mr. James Robertson died in 1880, after a long and useful life, 

 at the ripe age of seventy years. The firm continued under the 

 same name, and in 1884 A. W. Robertson retired from the busi- 

 ness. In that year the remaining partner, Mr. Hugh C. Robertson, 

 discovered a stone-ware somewhat resembling Parian in appear- 

 ance, possessing a hard, vitrified body, which he worked into a 

 variety of artistic forms. 



From this time Mr. Robertson directed his efforts toward solv- 

 ing the secret of the famous Chinese Sang de hcsAif, and after 

 four years of sacrifice and patient investigaticm his labors were 

 crowned with success. This discovery is the exact treatment 

 necessary to produ(^e the true ox-blood red, which with the Chi- 

 nese was the result of accident rather than an established art. 

 The body is the true stone, perfectly water-proof, and capable of 

 resisting as high a degree of heat as any known ware. The forms 

 of the vases are simple, with curving outlines, and entirely devoid 

 of ornamentation which would tend to impair the beauty of 

 color, which is that of fresh arterial blood, possessing a golden 



