Antique Chinese Yellow Porcelain Tea Tray with 'Birthday' Pattern

• Imperial Yellow - Imperial yellow, also called "Chinese Yellow" and "Royal Yellow" is an auspicious colour in Chinese culture.
  
  It was the colour of Imperial China and the symbolic colour of of the five legendary emperors of ancient China. The colour was used to decorate royal palaces and used in the clothing of the emperors.
• Gilding - Gilding is a method of ornamentation whereby a thin sheet of gold metal is applied to items made of wood, leather, ceramics, glass and silver for decorative purposes.
  
  For furniture including mirrors, the sheet of gold is usually applied over a coating of gesso. Gesso is a mixture of plaster of Paris and gypsum mixed with water and then applied to the carved wooden frames of mirrors and picture frames as a base for applying the gold leaf. After numerous coats of gesso have been applied, allowed to dry and then sanded a coat of "bole", a usually red coloured mixture of clay and glue is brushed on and allowed to dry, after which the gold leaf is applied. Over time parts of the gilding will rub off so the base colour can be seen. In water gilding, this was generally a blue colour, while in oil gilding, the under layer was often yellow. In Victorian times, gilders frequently used red as a pigment beneath the gold leaf.
  
  Metal was often gilded by a process known as fire gilding. Gold mixed with mercury was applied and heated, causing the mercury to evaporate, the long-term effect of which was to kill or disable the craftsman or woman from mercury poisoning. The pursuit of beauty has claimed many victims, not the least of which were the artists who made those pieces so highly sought after today.
• Foliate - Decorated with leaves or leaf-like forms.
• Imperial Yellow - Imperial yellow, also known as "yangqing" in Chinese, is a bright, intense shade of yellow that was historically reserved for the exclusive use of the Chinese imperial family. It was considered the most prestigious and luxurious of all colours, and was used to adorn a wide variety of imperial goods, including porcelain.
  
  Chinese porcelain decorated with imperial yellow was highly prized, and was often used to create exquisite pieces of imperial tableware, such as plates, bowls, and cups. The use of imperial yellow on porcelain was a symbol of the emperor's power and authority and was intended to impress and intimidate visitors to the imperial court.
  
  The process of creating imperial yellow porcelain involved a highly complex and labour-intensive process, which was kept secret by the imperial court. The exact recipe for the yellow glaze used on imperial porcelain is still unknown, although it is thought to have been a combination of lead, tin, and antimony, with the addition of a small amount of iron oxide to achieve the distinctive colour.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• Chinese ceramics, decoration - Imperial yellow 36
• Chinese ceramics, dynasty mark or period
  • Guangxu mark 344
  • vases, Imperial style 134
• Chinese ceramics, item type
  • plates 831
  • trays 33