Finally, there is the important group of wares obviously belonging to the Chün family but commonly described as Yüan tz´ŭ or ware of the Yüan dynasty (1280-1367), although no sanction for this name is found in the older Chinese books. The ware, however, is fairly common in the form of bowls, shallow dishes, and, more rarely, vases and incense burners. The bowls which are the most familiar examples are usually of conical form, with slightly contracted mouth and small foot, coated with thick fluescent glazes, which form in deep pools at the bottom within, and end outside in thick drops or a billowy line some distance above the base, leaving a liberal amount of the body material exposed to view. The body is of the _sha t´ai_ class and usually of coarse grain, varying from a dark iron grey to buff stoneware and soft brick red earthenware, though, as already noted, there are finer specimens which link it with the _tz´ŭ t´ai_ group. It is this roughness of substance which has caused the ware to be relatively little esteemed in China, for the glaze is often of singular beauty. The varieties in colour are innumerable and clearly due to the opalescence of the thick, bubbly glaze, combined with the ever-changing effects of copper oxide on a highly fired ware. Lavender grey, dove grey, brown, and grey green are conspicuous, but as the thickness of the glaze varies with its downward flow, so the colour changes in tone and intensity from a thin, almost colourless skin on the upper edges to deep pools of mingled tints where the glaze has collected in thick masses. It is usually streaky and shot with fine lines of colour, but sometimes there are large areas of misty grey or greenish brown tones too subtle for description. A section of these glazes will generally disclose the presence of red, and this red often bursts out on the surface in patches which contrast vividly with the surrounding tones. If the patches are large they will be found to shade off into green in the centre or at the edges. It should be added that crackle is almost always present, though it varies much in intensity and does not seem to have been intentional. [Illustration: Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Plate 40.--Chün Chou Ware. Fig. 1.--Bulb Bowl, porcellanous ware with lavender grey glaze passing into mottled red outside. Numeral mark, _i_ (one). Sung dynasty. Diameter 9¼ inches. _Eumorfopoulos Collection._ Fig. 2.--Vase of dense reddish ware, opalescent glaze of pale misty lavender with passages of olive and three symmetrical splashes of purple with green centres. Sung or Yuan dynasty. Height 10⅜ inches. _Peters Collection._] [Illustration: Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Plate 41.--Chün Chou Ware. Fig. 1.--Dish with peach spray in relief. Variegated lavender grey glaze with purplish brown spots and amethyst patches, frosted in places with dull green. Sung dynasty. Diameter 8½ inches. _Freer Collection._