A

• ANNEALING
  Tempering process to which glass is submitted after forming Gradual cooling in a special oven, called a lehr, removes strains in the material strengthens and stabilizes it,
• AUTOMATIC SHUT-OFF
  This term is used in association with a kiln-sitter. (see description in this glossary)

B

• BANDING WHEEL
  A round turntable which facilitates the application of a band or bands of paint color around a plate or other item of porcelain..
• BAT
  A work surface, usually made of plaster (but can be made of wood, or plastic-topped composition board).  It is used for working with clay.
• BISQUE
  (Also referred to as biscuit) Fired, unglazed clay items.
• BLANK (or BLANKS)
  Refers to porcelain which has not yet been decorated with paint.
• BONE CHINA
  Porcelain which has calcined animal bones as part of its body composition.  It usually has a thin, transluscent appearance.
• BURNISH OR BURNISHING
  The process of rubbing burnish gold (or Roman gold) with fiberglass.  The fiberglass may be in the form of a mesh or bundled "stalks".  Care should be taken when burnishing, as the fiberglass (especially the bundled form) tends to break off and is a source of irritation if it comes in contact with the skin or eyes. (It is glass after all).
• BURNISH GOLD
  (Also referred to as Roman Gold) Available in a paste (called a "pat") form or liquid.  It is painted on porcelain and fired.  Then it is burnished (see glossary explanation of "burnish") while the piece is still warm.  It gives a matte gold finish in contrast to the very shiny finish you get from Liquid Bright Gold.

C

• CONE PLAQUES
  A device used hold cones during firing. It holds three cones.
• CONE SETS
  A metal device used to hold pyrometric cones.
• CONE
  (The proper reference is "pyrometric cone")  A "cone shaped" or retangular piece formulated to bend at a predetermined angle, and certain time and temperature. Cones are used to control the firing of a kiln.  They come in different maturing categories.  The maturing nature of the cone is identified by  a number.  The number relates to the temperature at which the cone will melt in the kiln.  (See the chart at the end of the glossary for the cone numbers and related temperatures).  The smaller cones are generally used with a kiln-sitter.  The large cones (sometimes called senior cones)are used primarily in manually fired kilns.   These cones are about 2 1/2 inches long.
• COUPE PLATE
  A plain round plate, having a concave shape.  The edges of the plate turn up and the plate has no rim.
• CRAZING
  Fine cracks which appear in the glaze surface of an item after it is fired.

D

• DRYFOOT
  The unglazed part of a glazed item (usually this is on the surface which comes in contact with the kiln shelf or floor).

E

• ELEMENT
  The coils of high temperature wire mounted within the firebrick walls of an electric kiln. These elements are the source of the heat of the kiln.
• ENAMEL
  An opaque relief glaze paint used to decorate china.

F

• FIRE BRICK
  Bricks which are soft and used in the construction of a kiln.  This type of brick helps retain heat within the kiln.
• FIRING OR BAKING
  The process of heating glazed or unglazed clay or porcelain in a kiln.   Baking clay is strengthens it. Firing of china makes the painted colors permanent on the glazed or bisque surface.
• FLUX
  A material which can be added to china paints to lower firing temperature.  It usually affects the glaze color and appearance. Sometimes flux is added to china paints to produce a higher shine in the finished product.  Also a term used to describe any material that helps in melting or fusing another material.
• FRIT
  Reground glass which has been pre-melted and cooled.  It is used as glaze ingredient to make materials insoluble.
• FUSE
  The melting of items together (usually when exposed to heat).

G

• GLAZE
  A glossy finish or coat (can be colored, clear or white).  It fuses to the surface of clay after exposure to extreme heat in a kiln.
• GREENWARE
  Unfired clay.  Greeenware is dry, but cannot be used.  It is usually very delicate and subject to chipping or breaking.
• GROUNDING
  A process for setting up a (usually) solid color background on a china object.   Instead of painting the color on with a brush, grounding is accomplished by coating the area with a special "grounding" oil and then dusting the oiled surface with dry paint.

H

• HIGH FIRE
  Usually referred to clayware pieces fired in a kiln at a high temperature (around 2500 degrees Farenheit or cone 4 or higher).  Clayware included in this group is porcelain, feldspatic china, bone china and some stoneware.

K

• KILN FURNITURE
  Refers to the various posts, shelves, pins, stilts, and various other items which hold up or separate pieces of china in the kiln.
• KILN SHELF
  A flat (usually round or octogon shaped) fire-proof disk or half-disk (included in "kiln furniture").  It is used to build different Levels (tables) inside the kiln on which to stack the pieces to be fired.
• KILN SITTER
  A mechanical device, which is attached to the ourside of a kiln.  It has three metal rods which extend through the wall of the kiln.  They are arranged in a triangle fashion.  A small pyrometric conde is placed across the bottom two rods.  The top rod sits on top of the cone.  As the kiln heats up, the cone begins to melt.   When it bends to a specific angle, it releases a lever on the outside of the kiln (on the kiln-sitter) which causes the kiln to shut off.
• KILN WASH
  A fine powder composed of silica and china clay.  Water is combined with the powder to make a "soup" like mixture.  This is used to coat the bottom of a kiln, the top side of shelves and the rods of a kiln-sitter to protect them from glaze drippings or the glazed part of a china piece from sticking (or in the case of the kiln-sitter rods, from the cone sticking to the rods)..
• KILN
  An oven or furnace in used to heat ceramic clay and glazes to their maturing point.   Older kilns may have used kerosene for heat.  Most modern day kilns use electricity.

L

• LEATHER HARD
  Condition of clay which occurs during drying when it can be textured.  Pieces can also be joined at this stage without the danger that they will become deformed..
• LIMIT TIMER
  A device Installed on a kiln which turns off the kiln after a pre-set time.
• LIQUID BRIGHT GOLD A liquid gold paint used in decorating chinaware It is fired on and comes out of the kiln with a bright finish. It is less expensive than burnish gold.
• LOW FIRE
  Refers to hobby ceramics, using medium temperature ranges in a kiln to mature clay and glazes.
• LUSTER
  A thin, metallic film added over china before firing.  It can be used on both glazed and bisque porcelain and will produce different effects on these two different surfaces.   After firing, luster gives an irridescent effect to the piece of porcelain.   Unlike regular china paint, the color of a luster paint does not give you a hint of what the final luster color will fire to on the piece.  Also, lusters are not as predictable as china paint.  They may fire to a different shade or hue, depending on the temperature they are fired.  Luster is related to Liquid Bright Gold.

M

• MATTE
  China paint that fires without a shine.  This paint is generally used to paint bisque surfaces.
• MATURITY
  The moment in firing when the clay or glaze has reached its maximum hardness based on time and temperature.

O

• OPAL GLASS
  A white opaque glass.  This may be available in the form of white lamp shades, sheets, or white milk glass.
• OVERFIRING
  Refers to the condition occuring when the kiln temperature goes beyond the desired degree.   Often undesirable results occur as a result of overfiring.
• OVERGLAZE
  Painting (usually of colored china paint) on porcelain or china after the final glaze has been fired. The overglaze paint melds into the surface of the original glaze but does not penetrate under the glaze.

P

• PEEPHOLE
  A small opening in a kiln that allows viewing the inside of the kiln during the time the piece(s) are being fired.
• PLUGS
  Cone-shaped porcelain or firebrick used to close peepholes while pieces are being fired in a kiln.
• PORCELAIN
  Alternately referred to as china; a vitrified, translucent ceramic piece.
• POST
  A piece of kiln furniture used to support kiln shelves.
• PRE-FIRING
  A process done when a kiln is new.  A "test" firing is done with a kiln to check that it functions properly.  Generally, no pieces are put in the kiln for this firing.
• PROCELAIN ENAMEL
  This usually refers to the enamel created for fusion to a copper base.
• PROP
  Noun: The metal piece attached at the opening of a kiln to hold the lid open at various angles for the initial stages of firing.  Verb: To hold the kiln lid open by means of the "prop" apparatus on a kiln.
• PYROMETER
  A thermostat or heat measuring device used to high temperatures during firing of the kiln.
• PYROMETRIC CONE
  A small pyramid-shaped or rectangle-shaped piece of clay (about 1 inch long) used to measure the heat in the kiln during firing.  The cone will melt at a specified temperature during the firing process. (there are different cones for different kiln temperatures)  A new cone is used for each firing.

R

• RESIST
  A liquid material (or the process of using the material) applied to china ware (either glazed or bisque) which then repels or "resists" the application of glaze or china paint.   (See also "Wax Resist".)  Besides the wax resist, there are water based resists (red) which give a plastic-like coating over the piece and must be removed before the piece is fired.  There are some versions of resist which do not need to be removed prior to firing.
• ROMAN GOLD
  (Also referred to as Burnish Gold) Available in a paste (called a "pat") form or liquid.  It is painted on porcelain and fired.  Then it is burnished (see glossary explanation of "burnish") while the piece is still warm.  It gives a matte gold finish in contrast to the very shiny finish you get from Liquid Bright Gold.

S

• SENIOR CONE
  A large pyrometric cone.  These are 2 1/2 inches long and are usually used for manual observation during a kiln firing.  (See more explanation under "CONES" above.)
• SHARD or SHERD
  A broken piece of china or porcelain.
• SILICA
  A mineral used for separating greenware during firing.  Silica (Flint) will not harden at firing temperatures.
• SINGLE FIRE
  The process of painting a piece completely and finishing with only one firing.
• SLIP
  Liquid form of clay or porcelain.  Slip can be poured into molds for casting or it can be poured out on a "bat" (see definition) to form various flat shapes, which are then fired in a kiln. 
• STACKING A KILN
  Just another term used to describe the loading of a kiln.
• STILTS
  Props or supports for firing pieces in the kiln. These are generally made from porcelain and have sharp extensions of nichrome wire on which to set the china.

T

• TEST or TEST FIRE
  Refers to the firing of a piece of porcelain or china, usually to test the result, after firing, of an application (or a series of applications) of china paint on the piece, before using the paint in a regular painting..
• TILE SETTER
  A series of racks for placement of tiles in the kiln to keep them from warping during firing.

U

• UNDERFIRING
  Firing a piece in too short a period of time to allow the temperature to reach and remain at the point where the piece or glaze will mature.
• UNDERGLAZE
  The method or material used to decorate clayware before it is glazed.  China painting is an "Overglaze" process.

V

• VENTING
  Letting air into the kiln to allow the gases to escape.  This is the purpose of propping the kiln and is generally done at the beginning of the firing process.
• VERTICAL SETTER
  A vertical (as the name implies) rack which holds plates in the kiln during firing.
• VITRIFY or VITRIFIED
  Generally used to refer to porcelain.  Process when clay becomes glass-like from heat generated during the firing.  Vitrified material is nonabsorbent and generally translucent.

W

• WAX RESIST
  A material (or the process of using the material) applied to china ware (either glazed or bisque) which then repels or "resists" the application of glaze or china paint.   Often used to apply decoration to a piece.
• WITNESS CONES
  Large pyrometric cones put behind observation holes in the kiln wall and used to check the progress of firing in the kiln.