During the 17th and 18th centuries in Europe there was the “Chinoiserie” fashion for things Chinese, or what the Europeans believed to be Chinese looking, and large quantities of Chinese blue-and-white with pseudo-Chinese designs were exported to Europe.
After the reign of Ch’ien Lung, China entered into a period of political and economic uncertainty with increasing foreign intervention and domestic upheaval. This turbulent period saw a gradual decline in the quality of Chinese porcelain produced.
In fact, the kilns at Ching-te-Chen were destroyed by the Tai Ping rebels in 1853 and were not rebuilt until 1864. Nevertheless, throughout the later Ch’ing period, Chinese blue-and-white continued to serve as the basic utilitarian ware for everyday use among the countries of Southeast Asia and substantial quantities were exported, some of which were specially decorated to suit the tastes of specific markets such as Thailand and Vietnam.
Towards the end of the Qing dynasty during the Kuang Hsu period (1874-1908) there was a revival in the quality of porcelain and some very fine porcelains were produced during the closing years of imperial China.
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