The Ming Dynasty

"Cloisonné originated, it is believed from Byzantium and spread via the Silk Road to China. Now most modern cloisonné enamelled work comes from the far east. When visiting Beijing recently I visited one of the largest factories and was blown away by the complexity and beauty of the work. The metal to be enamelled first has small fragments of metal filigree soldered to its surface and then the voids are filled with the enamel mixture. The work is then fired at high temperature in the kiln to complete the enamelling. This is the process I saw and photographed. Not much 'Health and Safety' was apparent". Taken by Michael