BOOKS FOR COLLECTORS

With Frontispieces and many Illustrations
Large Crown 8vo, cloth.

CHATS ON ENGLISH CHINA.
By Arthur Hayden.

CHATS ON OLD FURNITURE.
By Arthur Hayden.

CHATS ON OLD PRINTS.
(How to collect and value Old Engravings.)
By Arthur Hayden.

CHATS ON COSTUME.
By G. Woolliscroft Rhead.

CHATS ON OLD LACE AND NEEDLEWORK.
By E. L. Lowes.

CHATS ON ORIENTAL CHINA.
By J. F. Blacker.

CHATS ON OLD MINIATURES.
By J. J. Foster, F.S.A.

CHATS ON ENGLISH EARTHENWARE.
(Companion volume to "Chats on English China.")
By Arthur Hayden.

CHATS ON AUTOGRAPHS.
By A. M. Broadley.

CHATS ON PEWTER.
By H. J. L. J. Massé, M.A.

CHATS ON POSTAGE STAMPS.
By Fred. J Melville.

CHATS ON OLD JEWELLERY AND TRINKETS.
By MacIver Percival.

CHATS ON COTTAGE AND FARMHOUSE FURNITURE.
(Companion volume to "Chats on Old Furniture.")
By Arthur Hayden.

CHATS ON OLD COINS.
By Fred. W. Burgess.

CHATS ON OLD COPPER AND BRASS.
By Fred. W. Burgess.

CHATS ON HOUSEHOLD CURIOS.
By Fred. W. Burgess.

CHATS ON OLD SILVER.
By Arthur Hayden.

CHATS ON JAPANESE PRINTS.
By Arthur Davison Ficke.

CHATS ON MILITARY CURIOS.
By Stanley C. Johnson.

CHATS ON OLD CLOCKS.
By Arthur Hayden.

LONDON: T. FISHER UNWIN, LTD.
NEW YORK: F. A. STOKES COMPANY.

CHATS ON ROYAL
COPENHAGEN
PORCELAIN

OLD COPENHAGEN FIGURE GROUP.

Lady and gentleman in contemporary costume.

Frontispiece.

Chats on
Royal Copenhagen Porcelain

BY
ARTHUR HAYDEN
KNIGHT OF THE DANNEBROG
AUTHOR OF "CHATS ON ENGLISH CHINA," "CHATS ON OLD PRINTS," ETC.

WITH FRONTISPIECE AND 56 FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
TOGETHER WITH
ILLUSTRATED TABLES OF MARKS

LONDON
T. FISHER UNWIN LTD.
ADELPHI TERRACE

First published in 1918

(All rights reserved)

TO

WILLIAM PETERSEN, Esq.

AS A TOKEN OF APPRECIATION OF HIS PATRIOTISM AND GENEROSITY IN FURTHERING THE INTERESTS OF ART AND STIMULATING ANGLO-DANISH FRIENDSHIP.

PREFACE

"A good wine needs no bush" is an old English proverb, and this is essentially true in regard to the art of the Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Factory. The late M. Louis Solon, in preparing his colossal bibliographic work on Ceramic Literature, called my attention to the curious fact that a small pamphlet (some four and a half by five inches square, of fourteen pages) written by me originally for the Artist magazine in 1902, and reprinted as a guide to the Royal Copenhagen porcelain exhibit at the Wolverhampton Exhibition in 1902, was marked "rare" and being sold to collectors for five shillings. M. Solon, with his usual perspicacity, added: "It looks as though, in its course from East to West, ceramic painting has deserted its old home to take refuge in the North. C'est du Nord aujourd'hui que nous vient la lumière!"

In 1911, Royal Copenhagen Porcelain: Its History and Development from the Eighteenth Century to the Present Day was issued by my publisher, who in bringing out this sumptuous monograph fell under the spell of the beauty of Copenhagen art. That volume appealed to connoisseurs and collectors and was welcomed both here, on the Continent, and in America.

It has been thought desirable, in view of the limited circulation of that volume, to issue a popular edition, which is here presented in a slightly abridged form with none of the essentials omitted. Many of the illustrations have not found their way into this gallery. But a brave array of pictures is given to convey to the general reader, and to those who have not perused the larger volume, the chief characteristics of Royal Copenhagen porcelain, and indicate reasons why this factory is now regarded as the leading factory in Europe.

How many of the great factories of the world can claim two great epochs in their history? But Copenhagen can do this. The first is the Müller period (overglaze decoration), when the factory assumed its well-known mark, in 1775, of the three blue lines indicating the three waterways of Denmark—the Sound and the Great and Little Belts. The second great period, the Modern Renaissance (underglaze decoration), practically commenced in 1885.

The porcelain of this factory has long been held in high esteem. Admiral Nelson in 1801, when with the British fleet outside Copenhagen, wrote to Lady Hamilton, "I was in hopes to have got off some Copenhagen china to have sent you"; and later, "As I know you have a valuable collection of china, I send you some of the Copenhagen manufacture." The bowl made at the royal factory in memory of the brave Danes who fell in the battle of Copenhagen is herein illustrated.

The Encyclopædia Britannica (11th Edition), 1911 (article on Ceramics), awards a high place to the Royal Copenhagen Factory, "the productions of which are not only famous all over the world, but have set a new style in porcelain decoration which is being followed at most of the continental factories."

At the present time museums and private collectors in this country and in various parts of the world are acquiring Royal Copenhagen porcelain on account of its artistic character.

Ordinary collectors of porcelain have always been desirous of selecting a subject which has not been exploited. The Worcester vase which to-day brings two thousand guineas at Christie's was once bought when it was new for as many shillings by some person who recognized its beauty. But in regard to old factories, most of the histories have been written to extol their work when the factory had closed down for