Porcelain single operation. In this process, "green" (unfired) ceramic wares are heated to high temperatures in a kiln to permanently set their shapes. Porcelain is fired at a higher temperature than earthenware so that the body can vitrify and become non-porous. Porcelain originated in China, and it took a long time to reach the modern material. Until recent times, almost all East Asian porcelain was of the hard-paste type. There is no precise date to separate the production of proto-porcelain from that of porcelain. Although proto-porcelain wares exist dating from the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 BC), by the time of the Eastern
Saint-Cloud porcelain Arita porcelain, Japan, known as "Fleurs indiennes" ("Flowers of the Indies") was also used as an inspiration. In its later years, Saint-Cloud also produced various designs which were less Asian in character, especially with some white soft-paste porcelain wares. After 1752, Vincennes porcelain was handed a monopoly of polychrome decors, which reduced the scope of other manufactories to some degree. Production continued until 1766, when competition from the Chantilly and Vincennes porcelain manufactories put Saint-Cloud out of business. Saint-Cloud porcelain Saint-Cloud porcelain was a type of soft-paste porcelain produced in the French town of Saint-Cloud from the late 17th to