342 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1900. 



a higher level of proficiency; and the direction of the factories was con- 

 fided to officers who were known to be possessed of the knowledge 

 requisite for such a position. Progress was sure and rapid; and during 

 the seventy-five years between 1698 and 1773 — comprising roughl}' the 

 latter half of K'anghsi's reign, the whole of Yungcheng's, and rather 

 more than half thjit of Chienlung — the manufacture and decoration of 

 porcelain in China attained a degree of excellence which in my opinion 

 has never been reached, either before or since. 



During the early part of K'anghsi's reign (1662 to 1722) green was, 

 as it had been among the later productions of the Ming dynasty — dur- 

 ing the Lunghch 'ing and Wanli periods of 1567 to 1619 — the predominat- 

 ing color employed in decoration, such porcelain being hence termed la 

 famille verte; and to this period belongs, in part, much of the ware 

 so decorated," which is usually ascribed to the earlier dynasty and is 

 considered a characteristic Ming porcelain. To the colors applied 

 under the glaze was now added a blue above glaze, which does not 

 seem to have been known under the Mings. During the later j^ears 

 of this reign, however, green gave waj^ to red as the predominating 

 color, and a style of decoration was adopted wiiich has been classed by 

 M. Jacquemart and subsequent writers under the title of la famille rose. 

 It is easily distinguished by its half tints and broken colors, having 

 for decorative basis a carmine red lowered to pale rose, and obtained 

 from gold, which is called in Europe purple of Cassius. The addition 

 to their palette of this color, of 3^el]ow derived from antimon}^ and of 

 white from arsenical acid, enabled Chinese artists to considerably 

 increase the varietj^ and beauty of their decorations. A director of 

 the government factories named Ts'ang Ying-hsiian is mentioned by 

 Chinese writers as having about this time gained considerable distinc- 

 tion b}^ his productions, which were of thin porcelain, covered with a 

 brilliant, and, in the most highly valued specimens, monochrome glaze. 

 The colors are stated to have been "snake-skin green," ''mud-eel yel- 

 low," blue, and dappled yellow. Other, but less esteemed, colors were 

 pale yellow, pale violet, pale green, and blue or red, both souffle. 



From 1723 to 1796. 



Shortly after the accession of Yungcheng, Nien Hsi-yao was, in 1727, 

 intrusted with the direction of the imperial manufactories. He per- 

 sonally selected the materials and superintended the execution of the 

 Emperor's orders. All the articles made by him — which are known as 

 Nien porcelain, nlen-yao — were graceful in form and of fine workman- 

 ship. They were chiefly monochrome in color, blue, bright and carmine 

 reds, celadons, and "of egg color as bright as silver," but some were 

 ornamented with painted flowers, cither incised or plain. Some of the 

 monochrome vases, dating from this or a slightly later period, have 

 lately obtained an extraordinary vogue among foreign collectors 



