Page:Brinkley - Japan - Volume 8.djvu/232

 tom requiring that they should be broken or given away after having once served their purpose. So, too, in the mansions of noblemen or gentlemen it was the habit, on all occasions of ceremony, to drink wine out of cups of either lacquer or unglazed pottery. For the household worship of ancestors, again, and on occasions of a sacred character, vessels of a similar nature were needed. The Mizoro potters, therefore, were not without liberal patronage. The materials procurable near the site of their workshops were credited with excellent qualities, and Ninsei's recourse to the place shows that in his day it enjoyed a certain reputation. Nevertheless the Mizoro-yaki does not compare favourably with the wares of Awata and Iwakura. Its pâte is coarser, its crackle larger and less uniform, and the glaze not only is more uneven, but also in its thicker parts sometimes assumes a milky, viscous appearance which, though appreciated by many connoisseurs, suggests the idea of crude technique. The word "Mizoro" signifies "turbid lake," and the same name is said to have been applied to the ware because the materials for its manufacture were taken from the bed of the Mizoro pond. When, under Ninsei's direction, the faience assumed a decorative character, simple fashions were at first preferred. The designs, which generally consisted of miniature pines or tufts of broad-bladed grass, were executed in black, chocolate brown, or dark blue. Subsequently, however, pieces were ornamented in the reservé style, monochrome enamel (always grass-green) being applied to the whole surface with exception of the parts that carry the pictorial designs. Specimens also exist which cannot be distinguished from Awata-yaki except by their mark. Speaking generally, delicacy of execu-