When Chinese porcelain first came to Europe in the 14th century, it was a rare and expensive item. The potters of Jingdezhen, China, created this fine item in mass quantities.
Generally, the Jingdezhen production method was a guarded secret, known only to a few. However, as demand increased, European potters began manufacturing valuable blue-and-white ceramics. Within a short time, European porcelain had become the standard around the globe.
Chinese blue and white
Blue and white porcelain is contrived using the color blue, usually from cobalt oxide, to create designs on shaped, clean, white clay that is then covered in a layer of transparent glaze and baked in a kiln at high temperatures.
Traces of blue and white wares are found beginning in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), but it was not until the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) that the art reached perfection. Finally, in the early 14th century, mass production of delicate, transparent, blue and white porcelain started at Jingdezhen.
During the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, the blue and white ware industry became increasingly important because, at this time, blue and white porcelain was not only known within the borders of China, it was also welcomed in the international trade market, initiating its imitation throughout Asia.
Potters in Korea imitated China’s porcelain with considerable success, and Japan’s potters did so for a longer period. In the Middle East, the 12th-century attempts to reproduce Chinese wares continued throughout the Ming period. In Europe, however, porcelain was a rare commodity before the 16th century.
The European trade in Chinese porcelain
Chinese porcelain was first introduced to the European market in the 14th century by Spanish and Portuguese merchants. It was an extremely rare and luxurious object collected by European royalty then.
In the 16th century, when the Portuguese established trade routes to East Asia, Chinese porcelain was transported in larger quantities to the West. As the demand in Europe grew, Chinese potters began to produce unique porcelain ware destined for the Western market.
Chinese porcelains arrived in the Netherlands in large quantities during the early 17th century. Large cargoes of this commodity were initially captured by the Dutch as war booty from the Portuguese vessels.
When the Dutch East India Company finally established its trade routes and connections with the Chinese market, it quickly became the primary supplier of white and blue porcelain to Europe.
As a result, Chinese porcelains came to the Netherlands in much larger quantities than before and, therefore, were more easily accessible for middle-class burgers in their efforts to emulate the royal lifestyle.
Delftware
The Western craze for Chinese porcelain diminished in the early 18th century when Europeans began to produce their own porcelain ware.
Delftware is the name given to the Dutch ceramics style that originated when potters in the city of Delft in the Netherlands began producing blue and white ceramics in the manner of Chinese porcelain.
While early Delftware patterns were inspired by Chinese ceramics, as time went on and local potters began producing blue and white ware, the decorative sceneries depicted on the wares became more Dutch.
Cobalt is used in the process of European pottery. Glazing and firing cause a chemical reaction that turns the black paint into the distinctive blue ink, completing the art. Due to how rare the Delft porcelain is and how much European people want it, every original piece of Delft is now worth a small fortune.
Delft pioneered a new method of clay mixing. Because of Delft potter’s efforts, they reduced the porcelain’s thickness. The result was reminiscent of traditional Chinese porcelain. Due to this misconception, people often refer to it as “Dutch porcelain” or “Delft porcelain,” although it is made of earth.
Other European nations responded to the high demand for Chinese porcelain by making their own porcelains. Under the rule of Tuscany’s Grand Duke, Francisco de Medici, Florence, Italy, is credited with pioneering porcelain production. Low-fired soft-paste porcelain or Medici porcelain was made between 1575 and 1587.
Production of saleable artificial porcelain began in the mid-1700s in the Paris district of Saint-Cloud. Saint-Cloud manufactured porcelain typically features blue-painted designs against a yellow or ivory backdrop.
The Meissen factory
Meissen porcelain was the first European hard-paste porcelain. The production of porcelain in the royal factory at Meissen, near Dresden, in Germany, started in 1710 and attracted artists and artisans to establish, arguably, the most famous porcelain manufacturer known throughout the world.
Its signature logo, the crossed swords, was introduced in 1720 to protect its production; the mark of the swords is reportedly one of the oldest trademarks.
Meissen remained the dominant European porcelain factory and the leader of stylistic innovation until somewhat overtaken by the new styles introduced by the French Sèvres factory in the 1760s. Still, it has remained a leading factory to the present day.
Among the developments pioneered by Meissen are porcelain figurines and the introduction of European decorative styles to replace the imitation of the Asian decoration of its earliest wares.
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