BODEEN SITRES CB/NA.
Messrs. Minton's imitation or rather reproduction of the splendid kind of china formerly made only at the royal factory of France, quite equals the old 'and celebrated pine tendre. In the texture and colour of the paste,' as the substance of the article is called, our new English china is if anything superior; being smoother and more free from accidental im- purities. It is only in the painting of the subjects employed that we per- ceive any inferiority; and this is an inferiority which would be removed were the English china of this description to become an article of luxury preferred to, or equally estimated with, the old Sevres, because the demand would enable the manufacturer to employ the very best artists. There may be seen at Messrs. Goode's, in South Andley Street, some very beau- tiful specimens of Minton's Sevres : particularly we noticed, a pair of vases and centre piece in tourquoise blue ; the centre piece painted with Watteau subjects, the vases with single figures on the plain ground of the porcelain. A similar set in deep ultramarine blue is equally good, the centre piece being painted admirably with figures of bambini playing. Those charm- ing figures in pure white Sevres have also been most successfully repro- duced, equal to the old work in every respect of style and drawing, and superior in the brilliant whiteness of the paste. To attain to this per- fection has been a work of persevering study and expenditure of capital, but it has proved in every way a success without question. The Rose da Barry porcelain is also made by Messrs. Minton, but not with equal perfection, the exquisite colour of this china as yet re- mains a thing of the past. But, perhaps, the modern majolica is even a more important development of art manufacture. In this there is more scope for our native boldness of style. Some very fine ornamental pieces have lately been executed in the style of the Palissy and majolica ware, but with very considerable varieties, which show how much this manu- facture is capable of. At Messrs. Goode's are to be seen some noble ewers and salvers painted with figures in the manner of Giulio Romano and very boldly moulded in the renaissance style of ornament ; particularly re- markable also is a large vase with snake handles, painted with arabesque subjects in white. Of the larger pieces there are two extremely clever and original in design; the one a sort of tripod tazza about four-feet high, in the renaissance style, with satyr heads at the angles and richly- coloured, the other is a flower stand for a large hail, formed of large ox horns twisted together at the small ends upon a central one which is sur- rounded with a branch of fig-tree and cones, all painted in true colours; this forms a very handsome and useful piece of hall furniture, the horns serving to hold flowers and the centre one perhaps a lamp. A pair of covered dishes in the form of baskets guarded by turkeys are capitally modelled and painted au naturel. Those prettily painted tazzas called Siena and Neapolitan faience have also been extremely well imi- tated.
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