Kings, emperors, and princes; nobles of high birth,
all took up the art with zest, spending great sums of money on
fabriques, as the porcelain factories came to be called. In Florence
Francis, one of the Dukes of the Medici, built a tiny laboratory in
the garden of the Boboli palace and there made a rude ware, some of it
hard paste and some of it soft. This was even before the St. Cloud
works were opened, and certain historians say that this was the first
true porcelain made in Europe. At a much later period (about 1735, to
be exact) the Ginori family, another titled Italian household of
wealth and position, owning estates just outside Florence, took up
porcelain-making, even sending ships to China for the necessary
clay. Fancy it! And to show you how highly this industry was esteemed
I will add that the Marquise himself superintended his workmen and
helped in manufacturing this Doccia ware, as they styled their
output."
"Did this happen during the Renaissance?" inquired Theo timidly. "It
sounds as if it might have."
Mr. Croyden nodded, cordially, much gratified by the lad's
understanding.
"That was just when it happened," he said. "In the meantime, at about
the same period, a beautiful soft paste called Capo di Monte was being
made down in Naples under the patronage of Charles IV--the Charles who
afterward became Charles III of Spain.
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