Antique Limoges Porcelain History in Brief
Discovery of Limoges Porcelain
Manufacturing of Antique Limoges Porcelain
Decorating Antique Limoges Porcelain
Identifying Antique Limoges Porcelain
Discovery of Limoges Porcelain
Have you ever wondered about the who, what, where and when of beautiful antique decorative
Limoges porcelain? Historians believe that it all started in 1275 when Marco Polo returned to
Europe from China and introduced China's high quality decorative porcelain. Europeans loved
the Chinese porcelain, and for several hundred years, they spent a great amount of time trying to
crack China's secret to making the porcelain. Finally, in 1708, Fredrich Bottger and physicist
Ehrenfried Walther Tschirnhausen of Germany uncovered the secret of the manufacturing process
for producing the high quality hard paste porcelain similar to that of the Chinese. Then, in 1768,
the very high quality clay, kaolin, which is the basic ingredient for manufacturing the hard paste
porcelain, was discovered at the village of Saint Yrieix-la-Perche near the town of Limoges,
France. Limoges is approximately 250 miles southwest of Paris on the Vienne River. With all
of the necessary materials available at Limoges, to include the wood to fire the kilns, water power
from the Vienne River to crush and work the clay, feldspar, and quartz, over 30 factories were
producing high quality porcelain by the 1890s. Porcelain works from the Limoges area, by
French law, can be designated as "Limoges Porcelain". The primary decorative antique Limoges
porcelain period extended from the mid 1800s to the 1930s. With the coming of World War 1
(1914-1918) and the Great Depression in the United States (1929-1933), production and
exporting of Limoges porcelain was greatly reduced, with many factories in the Limoges area
forced to close.
Manufacturing of Antique Limoges Porcelain.
During the early 1900s over 35 porcelain factories were operating in the Limoges area, with over
80% of the porcelain being exported, mainly to the United States. The Limoges porcelain
manufacturing process was a lengthy one. It began with the mining of the kaolin clay, feldspar,
and quartz from quarries and transporting it to the mills.
Milling. At the mills the kaolin, feldspar, and quartz were dried and ground to a smooth powder
and filtered through a fine screen. The powder was then formed into liquid paste balls and
delivered to the factory. The kaolin made up about 50% of the porcelain paste and gives the
porcelain its whiteness. The addition of the feldspar and quartz added strength to the porcelain
paste and allowed the paste to be fired at a very high temperature. The feldspar also gave the
porcelain its transparency.
Casting (creation of the shape). At the factory the porcelain paste, also called slurry or slip, was
heavily stirred to remove any air bubbles. Turners hand shaped the paste on a wheel for many of
the solid pieces, such as, plates, plaques, and chargers. Molds were used to form the shape of
pieces to include vases and pots. The paste was poured into the mold and allowed to
dry. The pieces were then removed from the mold and hand cleaned to remove any
imperfections. At this time any additions, such as handles, were glued to the pieces. The pieces
were then moved to the firing stage.
Firing (baking in kilns or ovens). The first firing, which was referred to as the biscuit firing,
dried the pieces. The porcelain was fired or baked at 900 to 950 degrees centigrade. Upon
cooling the pieces were porous, non-slippery, and dull. They were then cleaned and prepared for
the second firing or glazing stage. At this point many of the factories would add their underglaze
manufacturer mark or stamp. The second firing encompassed the baking of the porcelain
after it has been sprayed or dipped with a liquid made up mainly of feldspar and quartz. The
firing brought the paste and glaze material to a fusion point at 1400 degrees centigrade. After
firing for 30 to 45 hours, the pieces came out of the kiln with a very hard waterproof glaze. After
cooling, the porcelain was checked for imperfections, and the acceptable pieces were burnished
and polished. The Limoges porcelain pieces were then hard and no longer porous thereby
forming a fine, pure white product ready for decorating.
Decorating Antique Limoges Porcelain
There were several methods used to decorate antique Limoges porcelain. Upon the
completion of the manufacturing process, the white porcelain blank pieces were procured by
decorating studios, independent professional artists, and amateur artists for decorating. The
methods included:
Hand painting. There were two processes for hand painting porcelain, underglaze and overglaze.
Underglaze painting was mainly used for dinnerware pieces that would be subject to
heavy wear. The majority of the antique Limoges porcelain, produced for decoration,
was painted over the glaze and fired at low temperatures several times to establish maturation and
permanency. The painting was accomplished entirely by hand, utilizing mineral colors and
special brushes made from squirrel and camel hair. The vitrifiable paints were translucent like
the porcelain and required numerous applications to build-up the depth of color. After each of the
paint applications, the porcelain was fired at low temperatures in a muffle kiln to fuse the paint
with the glaze.
Transfer. The transfer method was utilized throughout the antique Limoges porcelain era. It
allowed the porcelain to be decorated much faster than totally by hand. The process entailed
taking a design either from lithographic stones or a copper plate, inked with mineral colors and
transferred to a thin tissue paper. The tissue paper was then trimmed and became referred to as a
decal. The decal, with the colored ink still wet, was then pressed face down with a damp cloth
and rubber roller to the tacky surface of the porcelain. The tacky surface was created by brushing
on a special liquid, usually oil of turpentine. The paper backing was carefully lifted
off, leaving the mineral colored design on the porcelain. The porcelain was then fired to vitrify
the design with the glaze. At times the decal was left on the piece and the paper was burned off
during the firing leaving the vitrified color design.
Mixtion. Mixtion was a combination of transfer and hand painting. The first step was for the
piece to receive the transfer or decals as explained in the paragraph above. Once the transfer was
applied then the piece was enhanced by additional hand painting. This method was popular for
creating a raised or three dimensional effect, such as, along the edges of flower petals.
Identifying Antique Limoges Porcelain
Identifying antique Limoges porcelain can be difficult. Some pieces contain a manufacturer's
and/or decorating mark, and at times, also, an importing or exporting mark. The marks are
located on the bottom of the piece. There are over 400 identified marks. A large number of
Limoges blanks were not marked by their manufacturer, especially before the fourth quarter of
the nineteenth century. The manufacturers mark is typically under the glaze and referred to as
the white ware mark. The decorating studio mark, usually inked in red, orange, or brown, was
stamped on top of the glaze.
|
