soft porcelain

pottery

Also known as: artificial porcelain, soft-paste porcelain

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July 15, 2026

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Soft-paste porcelain is a type of translucent ceramic ware that was produced in Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries as an imitation of hard-paste porcelain. It is distinguished from hard-paste porcelain by its softer body, which can be cut with a file, and it requires a lower firing temperature.12

Porcelain, in general, is a vitrified pottery with a fine-grained white body that is typically translucent. The word "porcelain" originates from the term used by Marco Polo to describe pottery he encountered in China. While true porcelain was first developed in China, European potters attempted to replicate it, leading to the creation of soft-paste porcelain. This type of porcelain was first made in Florence, Italy, around 1575.2

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Sèvres porcelain
…true, porcelain as well as soft-paste porcelain (a porcellaneous material rather than true porcelain) made at the royal factory (now the national porcelain factory) of Sèvres, near Versailles, from 1756 until the present; the industry was located earlier at Vincennes. On the decline of Meissen after 1756 from its supreme…
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…true, porcelain as well as soft-paste porcelain (a porcellaneous material rather than true porcelain) made at the royal factory (now the national porcelain factory) of Sèvres, near Versailles, from 1756 until the present; the industry was located earlier at Vincennes. On the decline of Meissen after 1756 from its supreme…
Read More