The basis of most of the enamels on copper is a fusible silicate, or colourless glass mixed with metallic oxides, reduced to a fine powder, which is applied according to the skill of the artist. The metal, with the enamel powder upon it, is then fired until it is melted and adheres to the metal. The different treatments help the expert to distinguish the period when a specimen under investigation was made, and to some extent the place of its manufacture. There is the translucent enamel, which shows up the design through the vitreous matter, a method originally adopted in Italy. Another process was that of applying different colours over an incised pattern, the figures or pictures being usually engraved in low relief. Coarser lines of engraving were used on the copper basis of the early enamels made at Limoges. Those of somewhat later date may be distinguished by the surface-painted enamels adopted in the later style, which flourished until about 1630. In this process dark enamel for the shadows was placed over the metal plate, the picture being painted in white with some portions in colour; a thin enamel surface was then given and the whole fired. The later surface-painted enamels were for the most part copies of well-known paintings or engravings, the colour or enamel being afterwards fixed by firing. In the process of enamelling known as champlevé the design was cut into the metal, the pattern or incisions made filled with colours, the enamels being then fused; the basis was nearly always of copper. The cloisonné enamel was generally on a brass basis, and as in the more recent examples from China and Japan, the cloisons or tiny cells of metal were filled with the right and appropriate colours; afterwards subjected to heat. In some cases the metal foundation is in the centre and cloisons or cells formed on either side of it. There is something about the old enamels of this type besides the wear and tear of centuries which distinguishes them from the more modern, which, generally speaking, are more brilliant in colouring, cruder and sharper in design, and without that beautiful tone which is so pleasing in the antique.
Chinese and Japanese Enamels.
The rarer examples of Chinese art date back to the beginning of the Ming period in 1368, continuing until its close in 1643. The charm of these early examples is at once recognizable when they are compared with others of a later date. Fig. 87 represents a large Ming bowl florally decorated in rich red, yellow, and white on a background of cobalt blue outside and turquoise blue within. Quite a different style of decoration is shown in Fig. 88; the design of butterflies and gourd-vine tracery being carried out in Pekin enamels in five colours. This remarkably fine box, so charmingly formed, contains a set of nine sweetmeat dishes, each one bordered with bats of cobalt blue on a lighter blue ground, on the cover of the outer box being the Shu monogram. Another splendid piece, represented in Fig. 89, is typical of a different style of decoration. This fine bowl, also of the Ming period, is florally enamelled, the inside showing the pattern outlined by wire cloisons upon a white ground, the flowers being worked in five colours. This bowl, which is four inches high, is represented in the illustration as standing on a beautifully carved stand of about equal height. These choice pieces are illustrated by the courtesy of Messrs. Glendining & Co., Ltd., at whose well-known London auction rooms they recently changed hands. The second great period of Chinese art is that of the Ching Dynasty, which commenced in 1644 and extended until more recent times. While to some extent the art and the decorative effect of that period was inferior to that of to-day, when judged from the present-day standard of modern art, there was a rare beauty about the old designs. The enamels of the Ching Dynasty were carefully prepared and placed, and the colouring soft and yet rich. The preparation of coloured matter by experts of that period when the best ceramics of China were made, has always been a subject of admiration and wonder to the potters and enamellers of more recent years. Examples of these charming wares are not exceptionally rare, among the collectable pieces being cups and bowls, exquisitely designed kettles, tiers of boxes, water vessels, round and oblong dishes, and incense burners. Some of the bowls with covers are of quaint forms, a favourite one being that of a peach. Vases of which the base is enamel are often further enriched by ornaments of copper-gilt. Among the rarer little curios seen in a representative collection may be mentioned small water droppers, mostly made in the eighteenth century.
FIG. 87.—BOWL OF THE MING PERIOD.
FIG. 89.—MING BOWL.
