Note 220 — Chapter VI · THE TECHNIQUE OF THE MING PORCELAIN

See T’ao shuo, bk. iii., fol. 7 verso. “Among other things the porcelain with glaze lustrous and thick like massed lard, and which has millet grains rising like chicken skin and displays palm eyes (tsung yen) like orange skin, is prized.” The expression “palm eyes” occurring by itself in other contexts has given rise to conflicting opinions, but its use here, qualified by the comparison with orange peel and in contrast with the granular elevations, points clearly to some sort of depressions or pittings which, being characteristic of the classical porcelain, came to be regarded as beauty spots.