Page:Brinkley - China - Volume 1.djvu/38

 duction, the evidence of Chinese and Japanese writers goes to prove that it was green faïence or stone-ware—céladon, in fact.

A more celebrated ware than any of the above is also said to have had its origin under one of these five lesser dynasties—the later Chou (954-960). The Keramists of Honan, who at that time enjoyed the distinction of supplying utensils for the Imperial Court, petitioned the Emperor Shih-tsung to designate a colour for the ware thus supplied. The Emperor in reply desired them to imitate the blue of the firmament after rain (Yu-ko-tien-ching). The result was the fabrication of a ware called Ch'ai-yao, Chai being the Emperor's sovereign name. There has been much confusion about the colour of this ware. Julien renders it literally "bleu du ciel après la pluie," a natural interpretation. But there is no doubt that the colour indicated by the Emperor was something much more than "blue," in the ordinary meaning of the term. It was azure of peculiar lightness and delicacy, with a marked tinge of green. Such a colour could not have been produced without great difficulty or with any certainty. It is the tint of the choicest céladon; essentially a connoisseur's colour, not to be appreciated by the uneducated eye. As for the nature of the Chai-yao, it was faïence or stoneware. The Tao-lu alleges that specimens were often disfigured by coarse yellow clay adhering to the base; a fact showing that the processes of manufacture were still more or less crude. The Chai-yao enjoyed an immense reputation. A Chinese poet says that it was thin as paper, sonorous as a musical instrument, polished, lustrous, and remarkable alike for its cerulean colour and the beauty of its crackle. Exagge-