The History of Ceramics Podcast: White Gold - The Race for Porcelain - Part 1

How did Europe become obsessed with porcelain? And who would win the race to discover the secret formula for this “white gold?” In this episode Paul Greenhalgh and Stephanie Rozene evoke a journey from Marco Polo’s China to the courts and palaces of Europe, where this mysterious material bewitched all those that encountered it.

Ceramics and artwork in this week’s episode include:
King Louis XIV
King William III & Queen Mary II
A late 17th-century engraving of a porcelain room in the style popularised by Mary II (Courtesy of The Met Collection)
Porcelain Room, Charlottenburg Palace, Berlin, Germany
Marco Polo
Unglazed Ewer (Earthenware) 9th–10th century (Courtesy of The Met Collection)
Francesco de' Medici, 1541—87
Bowl with Variation of 'Baba Nakkas' Design, Circa 1500—25 (Courtesy of The Met Collection)
Iznik Mosque Lamp (Turkey) 1585—95 (Courtesy of The Cleveland Museum of Art)
Potpourri jar (France)Circa 1690—95 (Courtesy of The Met Collection)
Terracotta Jug, Circa 1400–1190 BC (Courtesy of The Met Collection)
Maiolica Plate (Italy), Circa 1500 (Courtesy of The Met Collection)
Handled Vase (Spain), 17th Century
Rouen Faience Jug (France), Circa 1720 - Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Pilgrim Flask (Italy), Circa 1580, Medici Porcelain Manufactory
King Augustus II the Strong, 1670–1733