Fine China Identification

Fine china is made of porcelain.

There are two categories of china: earthenware or pottery; and porcelain. Earthenware is made of a coarse clay fired at high temperatures. It is opaque, stains easier than porcelain and is less expensive. Porcelain is made from a fine white clay mixed with certain chemicals. It's translucent and can be seen through when held up to the light; it's thinner, lighter and more expensive than pottery. Fine china is made of porcelain, and the best way to identify it is through its markings.

History

The light, translucent quality of porcelain.

Porcelain was first used in China. Europeans first learned of it when Marco Polo, the Italian Explorer, returned from his trip to Asia in 1295. Various efforts were made to reproduce it in Europe; but it wasn't until 1707 that the first piece was produced, the result of the work of two scientists, Johann Friedrich Bottger and Ehrenfried Walter von Tschirnhaus, who worked at the Meissen Royal Manufactory in Saxony, now known as Germany. Meissen Royal Manufactory was then, as it is today, maker of the finest European porcelain in the world.

Markings

Look at the underside of china to identify it.

Markings are found on the reverse side of china. Most are impressed into the clay beneath the glaze; others are hand-painted or printed either over or under the glaze. Markings contain codes and symbols that identify things like the age, manufacturer, artist and history of the piece. Many companies had their own style of codes, which did not follow more conventional ones. Some factories produced china with more than one design: one to indicate the manufacturer; the other, the decorator. Books of marks exist that help with the identification of fine china.

Designs and Colors

Different images in markings were popular at different periods. From 1820 to 1860, for example, scrolls were in vogue; from 1900 to 1932, heavily initialed rectangles; and from 1950 to 1960, squares rounded at the corners. The colors of the marks were iron red and cobalt blue for the first hundred years of production because these colors were the only ones at that time able to withstand the high-firing temperatures. More colors appeared later.

Forgeries

Marks were copied to make forged products appear authentic.

Markings alone are not enough to authenticate a piece because the marks of the most respected porcelain makers were often copied. The china most frequently forged were those of companies like Sevres, Nippon and Vienna. Knowing the dates certain terms were used on markings helps to identify the age of the piece: "bone china," for instance, is a 20th-century phrase; "royal," mid-19th century, and "hand-painted," 20th century.

Decorations

Roses and violets were popular decorating motifs in the early 19th century.

Decorations are either hand-painted, decorated or produced by transferware. Hand-painted decorations are those produced by the hand of an artist. To confirm that the piece is hand-painted, search the surface to see if the decoration is raised and study the design with a magnifying glass for paint strokes. Decorated china is made by applying a commercial stencil to the plate; the artist adds only the color. Transferware, the least expensive decoration, is the application of a stencil with or without the color. Studying the piece with a magnifying glass will reveal the millions of dots of transferware.

References

• Antique China Porcelain & Collectibles: Porcelain Marks
• From Times Past: How to Identify China
• Encyclopedia Britannica.com: Porcelain

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• "Kovel's Dictionary of Marks 1850 to the Present"; Ralph & Terry Kovel; 1986.