Delftware, the Blue and White Tradition

When Chinese porcelain began arriving by ship in quantity in the early 1600s, Dutch potters could not match the material, so they matched the look instead: local clay, an opaque white tin glaze over it, and cobalt painted straight onto the raw glaze before firing. At its height Delft had dozens of potteries working out of converted brewery buildings, and the products ran from plain tiles to tulip vases built in stacked tiers. Most of the trade collapsed in the eighteenth century when cheaper English wares undercut it. One workshop founded in 1653 still runs, and painters there fill plates and tile panels freehand, without transfers.

What to look for

• The painting bench - cobalt applied freehand to raw glaze, with no way to correct a slip.
• Tile panels - whole pictures built across dozens of tiles: ships, animals, children's games.
• Tulip vases - stacked tiers with spouts, made for single stems.
• The mark underneath - how to tell a hand-painted piece from a printed souvenir.

When to go

Year-round and indoors. Painters work office hours, so a weekday morning is the time to see the benches occupied; late on a Friday the hall can be empty. Factory tours need booking in summer. Delft's own museums cover the history properly and are worth an hour before or after.

Before you go

The demonstration is short and the route ends in a shop, which is how the workshops survive. Genuine hand-painted pieces cost a great deal, and the cheap blue souvenirs in the town are printed and frequently not made in Delft at all. If you have seen any working pottery before, much of this will be familiar.

Nearby

Delft's old centre is a short walk; The Hague is twelve minutes by train.