Refers to objects made of a fine white earthenware clay decorated with delicate, repeating, incised or impressed designs inlaid with different -colored slips, especially yellow ochre and brown. Favored designs were scrolls, coats of arms, a variety of popular abstract motifs, especially those used for ornamenting book covers. Motifs were generally derived from the pattern book "La Fleur de la science de pourtraicture" (1530) by Francesco Pellegrino. Relief work was often added. The thin, overlying lead glaze has the appearance of a varnish and gives the ware a cream color. Saint-Porchaire ware was made at Saint-Porchaire, France, and the surrounding area around Saintes in south-west France during the reigns of François I and Henri II, the period of manufacture lasting from ca. 1500 to ca. 1570. Due to the technical skill involved, only a small number were made (64 recorded). Such wares were imitated in the 19th century by such factories as the Minton Ceramic Factory in England.
