Canton porcelain Canton porcelain Canton or Cantonese porcelain is the characteristic style of ceramic ware decorated in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong and (prior to 1842) the sole legal port for export of Chinese goods to Europe. As such, it was one of the major forms of exportware produced in China in the 18th and 20th centuries. Typically, the exportware was made, glazed, and fired at Jingdezhen but decorated with enamels in Guangzhou (then usually romanized as Canton) for export to the west via the Thirteen Factories of the Canton System. Canton Famille rose in the 19th century was typically decorated with
Edmé Samson well as plates in the manner associated with Bernard Palissy. Also copied by the Samson firm were the early Qing dynasty famille rose and famille verte Chinese porcelains and the so-called "Imari wares", named for the Japanese port where a type of richly decorated porcelain made at Arita was shipped. The firm exhibited at the International Exposition (1867) and the Exposition Universelle (1889). Samson, Edmé et Cie did not set out to produce copies with the intention to deceive, and claimed all reproductions the firm produced would be distinctly marked to avoid confusion with the originals. However, many of its