What's Blue & White Porcelain?

In Chinese: Qinghua ("Blue-green decoration"). Porcelain decorated with cobalt on a white porcelain body covered with a clear colorless glaze. Famous from the Mongolian Yuan dynasty (1279-1368) mostly made in the city of Jingdezhen, located on the southern bank of the Chang River in Jiangxi Province. The first underglaze-cobalt ware known so far, was made by kilns at Gongxian in Henan province during the Tang dynasty.

During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the finest blue was imported to China and known as "Mohammedan" blue. It was made throughout the Ming Dynasty, the high points being the reigns of the emperors Xuande (1426-35) and Chenghua (1465-87). By the 17th century, China was exporting to the West, through the various East India Companies of Holland, England, Sweden, and so on.

The Chinese technique in the production of blue and white was to apply the decoration directly on the unfired clay body of the pieces while in other countries it was first hardened in a kiln. The blue is mixed with water and applied with a brush, then the porcelain is glazed and fired in the kiln. It is thought that the supplies of Mohammedan blue to China were low in the reigns of the emperors Chenghua (1465-87) and Wanli (1573-1620).

The blue and white of the Qing Dynasty emperor Kangxi (1662-1722) is considered to be of the finest technical workmanship