Ceramics, Porcelains and Vases

Imagine grabbing a few bottles of France off the cabinets in a advantageous meals emporium, reading a recipe that referred to as for two tablespoons of Greece, or admiring a shiny new Germany parked on the street. It might seem ludicrous to synonymize wine, olive oil, or vehicles with the countries of their origin, however there’s one export so strongly related to its supply that the country does certainly lend its title to the product. Porcelain ceramics, usually merely referred to as china, instantly conjure up notions of a Chinese aesthetic and artisanal custom, and nothing appears extra quintessentially Chinese than the blue and white patterns that adorn so many porcelain wares’ surfaces. Surprisingly, the origins of the blue and white aesthetic are not so endemic to China as one may suppose, and an extraordinary pair of vases on the British Museum helps inform why.

Porcelain must be saved away …