New-York tribune., 1878-11-22
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
vnp CERAMIC ART BY JENNIE J. Youyc. 8vo. pp'
' ll0 Harper a Brothers,

rhE CERAMIC aRI BY .rSE ss1,S;t, j. YOUNG ''' W.
The modern revival of interest in the ceramic
Art unlike the renaissance Of painting and sculpture
The close of the middle ages, is chiefly directed
the productions OF the past, rather than to ongn c
ions OF recent times. Hence the STUDY OF cersh'0e
entally study of history, study OF the orgih au ~
valonmept NJ a prominent branch Of human culture,
The rst attempts at pottery date from the earliest
uerods OF civilization Indeed they can almost be traced
hack 70 the prehistoric ages before any definite lines
were drawn between the legends OF fancy and the tscs
of history. The ancient relics OF the ceramic at
are found in Egypt. The banks OF the Nile aDoupoeu
with clay which Afforded the most suitable ma
terjal for the work OF the potter. The periodical
innndatons of the river left deposit of remarkable
purty extending from the banks to thefurthest margin
OF the flood But tire Egyptians did not carry the ar "
high degree Of perfection although they created LOT
een demand for the finest productions OF thelr poe'o'
Egypt however was probably anticipated by the dwel'
ers on the Euphraes, who cOOnzed the Iand OF 'e '
taking with them the arts which they had lrac'eo IN
their native land The history OF the art In ludia Is OBJ
scure 1t believed that the siecmehs ol Po'
tery in that country OF foreign origin But IL mas
been shown by later researches that lndla hau curry
made great progress the art, especially IN the appct
tion OF porcelain to the establishment OF architecture
There are remains of ancient forms OF pottery
which are more than two thousand years old IDe COM
mencement OF pottery in Chlna Is IOst Ill '"o
realms Of legend and romance. Az very
early period the Chinese eViDced the exquisite
sk in coloring which their artistic productions are
90 widely renowned Porcelain supposed to have reeh
an invention of the second century before the Christian
era ana was manufactured for more than fifteen nun
dred years before its general introduction INTO Europe
The Chinese have always been imitatos INC poVVe's
of one century followed their predecessors so that no
ATTEMPT at chronological arrangement can DC re-
he'd on But taken as O whole their pottery, stOneware
and porcelain must be regarded as evncing the most
admirable qualities Of the ceramic art thoush Soe
times OF grotesQue unineligble character Jap'n
csc art s Of Chinese origin but with great modcduons
of its own. Unlike the Greek, it awakens no adlnra-
ton for the working out Of ideal forms Nor does II lu
bue us with sense OF the mysterious like that Of Egypt
The Japanese are true to nature, far moro so
than the Chinese but they do not copy nature
IN every detail. Their work shows not only won
derfu coloring and pefection OF finish, but e1nper
ant fancy, richness Of invention and happy blending OF
tnts japanese porcelain and pottery differ from those
of China in greater simplicity Of design, less proiuse
and moro chase ornamentatiOn, and the use OF per-
spective. The Chinese have lowered ceramic ART Dy
dividing the ornamentatiOn among several Workmeh'
losing sight of artistic conception in the details OF me-
chanca finish. Among the cultivators OF the ceramic
art In modern Europe no name Ia more eminent than
that OF Bernard Passy His life forms brilliant rO-
nance history of pottery He devoted hmseH AT
first to the composition of enamel After various ex-
periments he succeeded IN producing white and pol
lshed substance with gass-makers furnace He tnen
In failure He tried again till he became poor that he
could not buy wood for his furnace In this dilemma,
he took the tree-props from his garden his furniture
and the flooring OF his house for fuel After short
lest he applied himself the construction of new
furnace, which he finished with bis own hands He put
IN the peces and started the fire but the furnace would
not work The pebbles in the mortar cracked under the
heat aew into spnters and stuck In the glaze OF his
pieces He broke them all up and tried another batch
this was spoiled by the ashes but after repeated at
tempts for more than fifteen years OF struggle and
misery he produced the lonGsought enamel and dis
covered the secret his famous pottery Within the past
few years, great centre Of decorated pottery mas Deeh
established at Limoges by the house OF Haviland otNew
York whose works have met with the highest appreca
ton especially from Americans from their novelty of
construction and decoration and their perfect adapta
ton of drawing and coloring TO their material In
Great Britain, the ceramic art shows con-
tinuous serial development from the early Celtic
works TO the Roman British wares, the early Saxon
the Norman medieval limitations Of the saracenic
the leadgazed and the stone wares OF the six
teepth century the pottery of Stafordsre and Wedge
wood, and the first appearance OF English porcelain
down TO the present time. Eughsh ceramics are OF
special interest 10 the American In many OF the old
homes III this country samples are found OF Englsn
pottery and porcelain brought over during the colonial
period. These are handed down as heirooms from
generation to generation, the remnants beng more
highly priced as they become fewer in number The
workmen of England III this branch, from the earliest
times, have shown the capacity for contendng WIN
mechanical and scientific difficulties which marks the
typical English character In our own country the ma
terias for every kind Of pottery found in different
places and hence the industry well distributed. As
early as the year 1766 American clays were i'm
ported into England from the Carollnas, GEORGIA.
and Florida, and used, to certain extent, by
wedgewoOd. In 1900 clay was dug in New-Jersey 'or
making stone wares aud after 1912 was used for fire
brick and other refractory materials In 1852 clay for
Hfv millions OF fre-bricks was taken from different To-
caites in that STATE and large quantity for fine pot
tey In 1874 205 900 OF fire clay were dug OF the
value OF nearly 81 OOO OOO and stoneware clay to the
amount Of $4,000 In the city OF Trenton the manu-
faeture pottery has been greatly developed within
short space OF time It's productive annual capacity is
not less than 50 500 900. aud during 1876 the actual
production was 81 $50 900. There now about III
potteries in the United States, including those for all
kind of wares, from terra-cotta TO porcelain.
Nearly all Of these have sprung up within the last
twenty-five years. many OF them since the ciVil war
Prominent among the Eastern pOtteries are those OF
Beverly Portland, North Cambridge, and Chelsea. In
the brief historical outline now presented, the comous
details of Miss Young's instructive volume have been
taken as guide in which with remarkable industry and
good Judgment the author has collected rch mass OF
ofmaterias and arranged them In singulary interest
ing narrative. WEile making free use OF foreign
writer's she also forth the fruits OF personal re-
search aud gathered store Of valuable information
which is not 10 be found elsewhere within the compass
of single volume. Her conscientious studies have
given unity 10 her work, exhibiting the progress Of
the ceramic IN the various stages Of its develop
ent and its influence on the refinement and elevation
of civilized life large space in the volume Is devoted
10 Illustrations which have been selected from the
highest sources and which produce many OF the most
celebrated specimens OF pottery and porcelain that
10 be found among the accumulated ceramic treasures
Of this country aud OF Europe
THE NINETEENTH CENTURY November.