willow-pattern ware, sometimes porcelain but frequently opaque pottery, originated in Staffordshire, England, c.1780. Thomas Minton (see Minton, family), then an apprentice potter, developed and engraved the design, presumably after an old Chinese legend. It portrays the garden of a rich mandarin whose young daughter elopes with his secretary. The lovers, overtaken on the bridge by her father, are transformed by the gods into birds and flutter beyond his reach. The scene with its willow tree covers the central part of a plate, dish, or bowl, with a border of butterflies, daggers, a fret, or other motif. The blue-and-white chinaware on which it appeared became immensely popular, and the design was reproduced with variations by many European potters and even in Asia, where it is still constantly employed, most of the ware being exported to Western countries.

jasper ware, kind of Wedgwood pottery in green, blue, lilac, and other colors, with characteristic Greek reliefs and designs.

Worcester ware, ceramic ware, first manufactured in 1751, when the Lowdin pottery was moved from Bristol to Worcester. Soft paste was employed, and tea services, vases, armorial mugs, and portrait plaques with underglaze decoration became popular. Modeled and painted floral and medallion motifs, Chinese landscapes, and the transfer print in blue, black, or purple were modes of ornamenting early Worcester ware. A more florid treatment, with grounds of color (especially blue) and gilt as foils for birds of brilliant plumage, was effected in 1768 by artists formerly at Chelsea factories; after 1783 deterioration in design was noticeable.

Ware, Isaac, d. 1766, English architect of the Georgian period. After travels in Italy he was employed in 1729 as clerk of the works at Windsor Castle. For Philip, earl of Chesterfield, he built (1749) Chesterfield House, Mayfair, of which his work The Complete Body of Architecture (1756) contains illustrations. In 1737, Ware produced a translation of Palladio. Ware designed mantelpieces, ceilings, and other details for Robert Walpole's house, Houghton, built by Thomas Ripley, and did drawings for Ripley's book on this house.

Ware, Henry, 1764-1845, American clergyman, instrumental in the founding of Unitarianism in the United States, b. Sherborn, Mass., grad. Harvard, 1785. As pastor (1787-1805) of the First Church, Hingham, Mass., he became known for his liberal inclinations. His appointment in 1805 as Hollis professor of divinity at Harvard aroused opposition in the orthodox division of the Congregational churches. The questions brought into prominence by his appointment helped to hasten the separation of the Unitarians from the Congregationalists and change their organization into an independent denomination. Later, in an interchange of views with Dr. Leonard Woods, Ware wrote his Letters to Trinitarians and Calvinists (1820) and other controversial works. In 1816 he took up his work as professor of theology in the newly founded Harvard Divinity School. In 1842 he published some of his lectures under the title An Inquiry into the Foundation, Evidences, and Truths of Religion. His son Henry Ware, 1794-1843, b. Hingham, Mass., grad. Harvard, 1812, was pastor (1817-30) of the Second Unitarian Church, Boston, and was professor in the Harvard divinity school until 1842. He was an editor (1819-22) of the first organ of Unitarianism, the Christian Disciple, and one of the leaders in the development of the denomination.

Sèvres ware, porcelain made in France by the royal (now national) potteries established (1745) by Louis XV at Vincennes, moved (1756) to Sèvres after changing hands. Before 1770 it was a soft-paste porcelain (pâte tendre), of underglaze decoration and alkaline glaze; subsequently it was a hard infusible porcelain, made of kaolin, with a feldspar glaze and an overglaze decoration. Delicacy and perfection of technique are dominant characteristics. Tableware shows flower and figure subjects on a white ground; clocks, vases, and plaques display panels or medallions on white with figures enclosed by ornate gold frames, the main ground being a brilliant color. Sometimes a diaper design in gold enriches the background. Generally the pattern of Sèvres ware followed the styles from the period of Louis XV through those of the 19th cent. In 1876 the factory was moved to new buildings near Saint-Cloud and is still in operation. Soft-paste porcelain was revived, and many new wares were introduced.

Staffordshire ware, various products of the Potteries district, one of the most famous areas in England for the production of pottery. Late 17th-century slipware such as that attributed to Thomas Tofts shows a naïveté and liveliness that make its examples among the most desired objects of ceramics collectors. Stoneware also was produced in the late 17th cent. and attained high quality. A white salt-glazed ware appeared in the first half of the 18th cent. Enamel glazes on top of salt glazing allowed for increasing richness. The end of the 18th cent. saw the advent of porcelain manufacture. Among the famous Staffordshire potters were Josiah Wedgwood, Thomas Minton, and Josiah Spode.

Imari ware: see Kyushu.

Doulton ware, English pottery produced at Lambeth after 1815, first by John Doulton and his partners, then by his descendants. It won the medal at the Exhibition of 1851 and more than 200 subsequent awards for the perfection of the various products and the beauty of their decoration by skilled artists who signed their work. It includes brown stoneware with graffito or scratched designs; other salt-glaze pieces with black, brown, blue, bronze, green, gray, or white bodies; faience; impasto; and Carrara. Sculptured terra-cotta plaques by George Tinworth won additional fame for Doulton ware. Its factories became the Royal Doulton Potteries.

Derby ware, English china produced at Derby since about 1750, when William Duesbury opened a pottery there. The china was close in style to contemporary Chelsea ware and Bow ware, whose factories Derby absorbed in the 1770s. It became Royal Crown Derby in 1890 by permission of Queen Victoria. It was in this ware that the government authorized reproductions of the Rhodian and Persian porcelains in the Victoria and Albert Museum for exhibiting in the provinces. Japanese Imari porcelain also was successfully reproduced. Derby ware is distinguished by delicacy of body and richness of decoration; ivory china and eggshell porcelain are among the types manufactured. There have been a score or more of Derby marks, most of which show a crown over a D, sometimes with crossed swords and six dots, the whole in blue or red.

Damascus ware, early siliceous-glazed semiporcelain produced in Damascus. The most common decoration is in blue and black. However, purple, sage green, and, rarely, a red can be found. Made mainly in the 14th cent., it arrived in Europe via Venice as the container of exotic foods. After the contents were eaten, the bowls were kept as treasured possessions.

Copenhagen ware, several types of pottery, both underglaze and overglaze, produced in Copenhagen since c.1760. At that time a Frenchman, Louis Fournier, made soft-paste chinaware in the French style. Hard porcelain was introduced in 1775, when pieces with classical figures were in high favor. The Royal Copenhagen Porcelain factory and other factories have produced especially fine tableware and fluted porcelain of the blue Danish pattern. The modern white underglaze porcelain was first made by Arnold Krog in the late 19th cent. and was found to be well adapted to animal and figure sculptures.

Chelsea ware, chinaware made in the mid-18th cent. at a factory in Chelsea, London. The earliest specimens extant are dated 1745 and have the potter's mark of a triangle and the word Chelsea. Nicholas Sprimont in the late 1740s directed the factory's production. An extremely fine ware was developed, inspired perhaps by Sèvres porcelain. The mid-1750s, during which a red anchor mark was employed, saw the production of what are considered to be among the best of European porcelains. They are often based on designs of Meissen ware and have a soft, clear, white body and clean soft colors. There was also a deep blue, gold-decorated type. Characteristic figure subjects were produced, as were miniatures for curtain tiebacks, scent bottles, dressing-table accessories, and toys. The soft paste of which the china was made lent itself to both modeling and painting. The plant was merged with the Derby factory in 1770.

Bow ware, English porcelain, similar to Chelsea ware. It was made at Stratford-le-Bow from 1730 to 1776, when its factory was absorbed by the Derby ware pottery.

Belleek ware, pottery with a highly lustrous and often iridescent glaze. It is made at Belleek, Co. Fermanagh, Northern Ireland.