Geographical Position.--Successive Conquests.--Its Independent Art.--Confused Opinions regarding it.--Its Porcelain.--Decoration.....154 CHAPTER VII. JAPAN. How to Study Japanese Art: Its Origin.--Its Revived Independence.--Nomino-Soukoune.--Shirozayemon.--Raku.--When Porcelain was First Made.--Shonsui.--Form of Government.--The Gods.--Symbols.--“Land of Great Peace.”--Foreign Relations.--General Features of Art.--Chinese and Japanese Porcelains.--POTTERY: Geographical Distribution.--Classification.--Satsuma.--Difficult Ware.--Saki Cups.--Imitations of Satsuma.--Kioto.--Awata.--Awadji.--Banko. --Kiusiu.--Karatsu.--Suma.--PORCELAIN: Leading Differences between Japanese and Chinese.--Sometsuki Blue.--Ware for Export.--Gosai, or Nishikide.--Arita, or Hizen.--Families.--Decoration.--Modern Hizen.--Seidji.--Kioto.--Eraku.--Kaga.--Portraiture.--Owari.--Lacquer. --Cloisonné.--Rose Family.--Early Styles: Indian: Dutch Designs.--General Characteristics of Japanese Art.....156 CHAPTER VIII. PERSIA. Persia, and its Influence.--History.--Conquests.--Religious Revolutions.--Zoroaster.--Mohammed.--Geographical Position.--General View of Influences bearing upon Art.--Decoration.--Flowers and Symbols.--Conventional Styles.--Whence came the Monsters Appearing upon Wares.--Metallic Lustre.--POTTERY: Composition.--Caution in Looking at Specimens.--Wall-Tiles and their Decoration.--Vases.--PORCELAIN: Had Persia a True Porcelain?--Classification, and the Difficulties Attending It.--Decoration.--Classes Formed by Prevailing Color.....189 BOOK III.--EUROPE. CHAPTER I. THE FOUNTAINS OF EUROPEAN ART. Routes by which Art Travelled.--Their Point of Convergence.--Cyprus: Its History.--The Successive Nations Governing It.--The Strata of Ancient Civilization found within its Shores.--The Discoveries of Cesnola.--Larnaca.--Dali.--Athieno.--Curium.--Progress of Cypriote Pottery.--Early Greek Art: Its Connection with Assyria and Egypt.--Phœnician and Assyrian Art.--General Deductions.--Asia Minor.--Oriental Art turning in various Streams to Greece.--What Greece Rejected, Persia Seized upon.--Persia’s Contributions to Ceramic Art.--History in Reference to its Art.--Effect of Conquest.--What Persia Taught the Arabs.--Spread of Persian Art by the Saracens.--Rhodes.--Damascus.--Progress of Saracenic Art.--The North of Africa.--Metallic Lustre and Stanniferous Enamel.--Hispano-Moresque.--Early Spain.--Persian Influence upon Europe.....198 CHAPTER II. GREECE.