To some extent the history of Chinese art has been the history of reproduction. Chinese artists in all fields have paid homage to their past masters by creating imitations or replicas of their works. In the porcelain industry in recent decades, this activity has become particularly fervent and motivated by rather more mercenary rewards. Prices for Chinese porcelain have been rising very steadily and recently porcelain has become very fashionable, with objects often achieving very high prices. It is clearly a potentially very lucrative market for forgers and in the last decade the quantity and quality of fakes has risen dramatically. As a result, buyers are losing confidence in the dealers and auction houses, and museums begin to question pieces that they have acquired, or been given, in recent years. The aim of the project is to investigate the possibility that analysis can shed new light on the history, provenance and dating of certain periods of Chinese porcelain, with the implication that this can be used to develop a reliable and practical scientific test to assist in the identification of later copies. The plausibility of this leading to an industry standard test would be explored.
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