84 
ttERAMIC STUDIO 
POTTERY CLASS 
Frederick A . Rhead 
THE word monogram is taken from the Greek UOVOS 
(monos) and YPAVUA (gramma) and signifies a single 
mark. The Encyclopaedia Brittanica (and Encyclopaedia 
Americana) defines a monogram as "a character or cy- 
pher composed of one, two, or more letters interwoven," 
and the Century Dictionary and Encyclopaedia, as "Two 
or more letters, so combined as to form a single character. " 
I quote the latter from memory, but it is the essence of the 
definition if not exactly word for word. All other diction- 
aries and encyclopaedias agree on the general sense of these 
definitions of the meaning of the word. 
A point is made of this because certain writers, notably 
L. F. Day , have attempted to establish an arbitrary rule, deny- 
ing the claim to the title of monogram to any combination 
of letters, if every letter does not form part of another. 
In this he follows the lead of R. Sturgis, who, however, 
does not advance the theory so dogmatically. Tike Sturgis, 
Day quotes the most used of all monograms, the X P, which 
was an abbreviation of the word Christus (XPIETOE) , but 
while Sturgis accepts the ordinary device, which is simply 
the letter P drawn through the middle of the X, Day says 
it is only a monogram when one limb of the X joins the stroke 
of the P. As a matter of fact, both are monograms but the 
mutilated one is the least satisfactory. 
P 
X 
&r 
X 
SACRED SACRED 
MONOGRAM PHILLIPE BURTY'S STAMP MONOGRAM. 
Sturgis quotes and illustrates Phillipe Burty's stamp as 
a perfect specimen of a monogram. Actually it is a very 
poor monogram from every point of view. Two of the 
letters are leaving at awkward angles, and one letter is 
reversed, a device which exhibits poverty of invention, except 
in the cases of the Trent monograms of the seventeenth 
and eighteenth centuries where it was commonly the practice 
to reverse letters to obtain symmetry; but although the 
style of that period was florid and debased it cannot be said 
that designers like Tragonard and Salenbier were lacking in 
invention. Moreover this monogram of Burty's only fulfils 
the claims in an elementary and perfunctory fashion. The 
letters are just stuck on to each other without any real 
sense of design, and while each letter is part of another, it 
is never part of two others. 
In the examples I have given, all the conditions claimed 
by Day and Sturgis are compiled with, not because they 
are really necessary to the production of a perfect monogram, 
but because, in designing a monogram, the economization 
of decorative properties is generally a sound principle. In 
the example S. A. R. A. it will be found that every letter is 
not only part of another letter, but every letter is part of 
every other letter, and the same will be found in several 
other examples. 
This, however, is only a question of ingenuity, which 
should always be subservient to the principles of design. A 
monogram is primarily a decorative device, exhibiting cer- 
tain letters, arranged on an ornamental basis. If it were 
not so the plain letters would serve. In designing a mono- 
gram, it will be well to endeavor to make every part of a 
letter do service as part of another, but if it should be found 
that the introduction of an independent letter has the effect 
of completing the decorative scheme, it would be folly not 
to introduce it. It will be none the less a monogram be- 
cause we ignore a dogmatic theory which has not even the 
excuse of pedantry; for the pedant is at least justified by his 
hide-bound exactitude. The first desideratum, then, is 
that the monogram should be a good piece of decoration; 
the second, that it should, if possible, reflect the individu- 
ality of the user — not a difficult matter when we consider 
the number and variety of alphabets in existence, and the 
limitless possibilities in their combination. The examples 
given are intended primarily for reproduction in liquid 
underglaze colors, but may be executed in enamels, gold, 
sgraffito, or ordinary underglaze. Some of the examples, 
notably those executed in a fine line, such as F. A. R., 
S. B. D., S. B. H., S. R., and S. W. S., would be more 
easily executed if traced in ordinary colors in the usual way, 
on account of the difficulty of enclosing so fine a line with 
clearness and decision, but they would be simple and ef- 
fective if traced in lamp black, and enclosed in a square 
panel, or any other shape that might be fancied. The panel 
should then be filled in with the liquid color, covering the 
lamp black monogram. The result would be a white mono- 
gram on a panel of any desired color. The monogram with 
the black background A. A. W. M. Y. is an example of this, 
and is the easiest among the examples illustrated to execute 
in this method, but any of the designs may be effectively 
carried out in this way, so long as the device is enclosed in a 
panel or band, or the whole background tinted. If the 
letters are dark on a white ground, they may be done in 
various colors, but as a general rule the effect is more satis- 
factory if only one tint is used. It is only necessary to 
repeat the most important points to be observed. The 
lamp black must be worked in oil, or the stopping out will 
not be clear and perfect. Great care must be taken to 
avoid mistakes as these are impossible to erase or rectify, 
either in the case of the lamp black or the liquid color. The 
ware must be fired at a low heat to destroy the lamp black 
and to burn out the oil, or the lines will not be clear and 
perfect. When this is done, it may be necessary to brush 
the surface well with a stiff brush, or to scour it with very 
fine sand paper. The latter is perhaps the best, as it is 
impossible to remove or affect the work after it has passed 
through the hardening kiln. This firing is of course not 
needed in the case of clay ware, as the biscuit firing removes 
the oil and lamp black. If a design is worked out in clay, 
it is interesting to supplement it in the biscuit state by 
again working over it and deepening portions, or washing 
over a pale blue patch, for instance, with green or brown, 
after a pattern has been done on the pale blue in lamp black. 
The effect would show pale blue lines on a brown or green 
ground. But it is better to avoid anything that savours of 
complication until success has been attained in the simpler 
and more direct application of the process. In the trial 
stages the simplest patterns should be done, and as few 
colors as possible used — two or three at the outside. Thus 
the possibilities and the limitations of the underglaze 
liquid colors will be made clear, and the radius of experiment 
widened. The liquid underglaze colors may be obtained 
from the People's University (Ceramic Division) , University 
City, St. Louis, Mo. 
# i? 
STUDIO NOTE 
Miss Jeanne M. Stewart, of Portland, Ore., has recent- 
ly taken up the teaching of China Painting by mail. 
