CHAPTER XXII. English Porcelain (_continued_). The Hard Paste of Plymouth and Bristol, 375 CHAPTER XXIII. Contemporary European Porcelain, 387 EXPLANATION OF THE MARKS ON THE PLATES, 395 MARKS ON PORCELAIN, 400 INDEX, 405 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS I. JAPANESE, Imari porcelain (‘Old Japan’). (H. c. 19 in.) Vase, slaty-blue under glaze, iron-red of various shades and gold over glaze. Early eighteenth century. Salting collection......(_Frontispiece._) II. CHINESE, Ming porcelain. (H. c. 15 in.) Jar with blue-black ground and thin, skin-like glaze. Decoration in relief slightly counter-sunk, pale yellow and greenish to turquoise blue. Probably fifteenth century. Salting collection......(_To face p. 44._) III. (1) CHINESE. (H. c. 9 in.) Figure of the Teaching Buddha. Celadon glaze, the hair black. Uncertain date. British Museum. (2) CHINESE, probably Ming dynasty. (H. 11¼ in.) Vase with open-work body, enclosing plain inner vessel. Thick celadon glaze. Victoria and Albert Museum......(_To face p. 64._) IV. CHINESE, Sung porcelain. (H. c. 12 in.) Small jar with thick pale-blue glaze, and some patches of copper-red; faintly crackled. _Circa_ 1200. British Museum......(_To face p. 71._) V. CHINESE, Ming porcelain. Three small bowls with apple-green glaze. Fifteenth or sixteenth century. British Museum. (1) Floral design in gold on green ground. (Diam. 4¾ in.) On base a coin-like mark, inscribed _Chang ming fu kwei_--‘long life, riches, and honour.’ (2) Similar decoration and identical inscription to above (diam. 4¾ in.), set in a German silver-gilt mounting of sixteenth century. (3) Shallow bowl (diam. 5¼ in.). Inside, apple-green band with gold pattern similar to above; in centre, cranes among clouds--blue under glaze. .....(_To face p. 81._) VI. CHINESE. Ming porcelain. (H. 7¾ ins.) Spherical vase, floral decoration of Persian type in blue under glaze; the neck has probably been removed for conversion into base of hookah. Probably sixteenth century. Bought in Persia. Victoria and Albert Museum......(_To face p. 84._) VII. (1) CHINESE. Ming porcelain. (H. c. 18 in.) Baluster-shaped vase; greyish crackle ground, painted over the glaze with turquoise blue flowers (with touches of cobalt), green leaves and manganese purple scrolls; a little yellow in places, and around neck cobalt blue band _under glaze_. On base, mark of Cheng-hua, possibly of as early a date (1464-87). British Museum.