EDXRF studies on blue and white Chinese Jingdezhen porcelain samples from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties

The chemical compositions of blue and white Chinese Jingdezhen porcelain sa mples were analysed using energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) tech niques. The results were subjected to multivariate statistical analysis, Di fferent compositional patterns were found for specimens from different peri ods (Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties) and for different intended usage (imper ial or common). The reasons for these variations are discussed. From the an alysis a discriminant function is generated that is capable of classifying samples with high efficiency. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.