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Porcelain

Porcelain is a ceramic material made by heating raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between 1200 and 1400 °C. The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arise mainly from vitrification and the formation of the mineral mullite within the body at these high temperatures. End applications include tableware, decorative ware such as figurines, and products in technology and industry such as electrical insulators and laboratory ware.

The manufacturing process used for porcelain is similar to that used for earthenware and stoneware, the two other main types of pottery, although it can be more challenging to produce. It has usually been regarded as the most prestigious type of pottery due to its delicacy, strength, and high degree of whiteness. It is frequently both glazed and decorated.

Though definitions vary, porcelain can be divided into three main categories: hard-paste, soft-paste, and bone china. The categories differ in the composition of the body and the firing conditions.

Porcelain slowly evolved in China and was finally achieved (depending on the definition used) at some point about 2,000 to 1,200 years ago. It slowly spread to other East Asian countries, then to Europe, and eventually to the rest of the world. The European name, porcelain in English, comes from the old Italian porcellana (cowrie shell) because of its resemblance to the surface of the shell. Porcelain is also referred to as china or fine china in some English-speaking countries, as it was first seen in imports from China during the 17th century. Properties associated with porcelain include low permeability and elasticity; considerable strength, hardness, whiteness, translucency, and resonance; and a high resistance to corrosive chemicals and thermal shock.

Porcelain has been described as being "completely vitrified, hard, impermeable (even before glazing), white or artificially coloured, translucent (except when of considerable thickness), and resonant". However, the term "porcelain" lacks a universal definition and has "been applied in an unsystematic fashion to substances of diverse kinds that have only certain surface-qualities in common".

Traditionally, East Asia only classifies pottery into low-fired wares (earthenware) and high-fired wares (often translated as porcelain), the latter also including what Europeans call "stoneware", which is high-fired but not generally white or translucent. Terms such as "proto-porcelain", "porcellaneous", or "near-porcelain" may be used in cases where the ceramic body approaches whiteness and translucency.

In 2021, the global market for porcelain tableware was estimated to be worth US$22.1 billion.

Hard paste
Hard-paste porcelain was invented in China, and it was also used in Japanese porcelain. Most of the finest quality porcelain wares are made of this material. The earliest European porcelains were produced at the Meissen factory in the early 18th century; they were formed from a paste composed of kaolin and alabaster and fired at temperatures up to 1400 °C in a wood-fired kiln, producing a porcelain of great hardness, translucency, and strength. Later, the composition of the Meissen hard paste was changed, and the alabaster was replaced by feldspar and quartz, allowing the pieces to be fired at lower temperatures. Kaolinite, feldspar, and quartz (or other forms of silica) continue to constitute the basic ingredients for most continental European hard-paste porcelains.

Soft paste
Soft-paste porcelains date back to early attempts by European potters to replicate Chinese porcelain by using mixtures of clay and frit. Soapstone and lime are known to have been included in these compositions. These wares were not yet actual porcelain wares, as they were neither hard nor vitrified by firing kaolin clay at high temperatures. As these early formulations suffered from high pyroplastic deformation, or slumping in the kiln at high temperatures, they were uneconomic to produce and of low quality.

Formulations were later developed based on kaolin with quartz, feldspars, nepheline syenite, or other feldspathic rocks. These are technically superior and continue to be produced. Soft-paste porcelains are fired at lower temperatures than hard-paste porcelains; therefore, these wares are generally less hard than hard-paste porcelains.

Bone china
Although originally developed in England in 1748 to compete with imported porcelain, bone china is now made worldwide, including in China. The English had read the letters of Jesuit missionary François Xavier d'Entrecolles, which described Chinese porcelain manufacturing secrets in detail. One writer has speculated that a misunderstanding of the text could possibly have been responsible for the first attempts to use bone-ash as an ingredient in English porcelain, although this is not supported by modern researchers and historians.

Traditionally, English bone china was made from two parts of bone ash, one part of kaolin, and one part of china stone, although the latter has been replaced by feldspars from non-UK sources.

Materials
Kaolin is the primary material from which porcelain is made, even though clay minerals might account for only a small proportion of the whole. The word paste is an old term for both unfired and fired materials. A more common terminology for the unfired material is "body"; for example, when buying materials a potter might order an amount of porcelain body from a vendor.

The composition of porcelain is highly variable, but the clay mineral kaolinite is often a raw material. Other raw materials can include feldspar, ball clay, glass, bone ash, steatite, quartz, petuntse and alabaster.

The clays used are often described as being long or short, depending on their plasticity. Long clays are cohesive (sticky) and have high plasticity; short clays are less cohesive and have lower plasticity. In soil mechanics, plasticity is determined by measuring the increase in content of water required to change a clay from a solid state bordering on the plastic, to a plastic state bordering on the liquid, though the term is also used less formally to describe the ease with which a clay may be worked.

Clays used for porcelain are generally of lower plasticity than many other pottery clays. They wet very quickly, meaning that small changes in the content of water can produce large changes in workability. Thus, the range of water content within which these clays can be worked is very narrow and consequently must be carefully controlled.

Forming
Porcelain can be made using all the shaping techniques for pottery.

Glazing
Biscuit porcelain is unglazed porcelain treated as a finished product, mostly for figures and sculpture. Unlike their lower-fired counterparts, porcelain wares do not need glazing to render them impermeable to liquids and for the most part are glazed for decorative purposes and to make them resistant to dirt and staining. Many types of glaze, such as the iron-containing glaze used on the celadon wares of Longquan, were designed specifically for their striking effects on porcelain.

Decoration
Porcelain often receives underglaze decoration using pigments that include cobalt oxide and copper, or overglaze enamels, allowing a wider range of colours. Like many earlier wares, modern porcelains are often biscuit-fired at around 1,000 °C, coated with glaze and then sent for a second glaze-firing at a temperature of about 1,300 °C or greater. Another early method is "once-fired", where the glaze is applied to the unfired body and the two fired together in a single operation.

Firing
In this process, "green" (unfired) ceramic wares are heated to high temperatures in a kiln to permanently set their shapes, vitrify the body and the glaze. Porcelain is fired at a higher temperature than earthenware so that the body can vitrify and become non-porous. Many types of porcelain in the past have been fired twice or even three times, to allow decoration using less robust pigments in overglaze enamel.

Chinese porcelain
Porcelain was invented in China over a centuries-long development period beginning with "proto-porcelain" wares dating from the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 BCE). By the time of the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220 CE) these early glazed ceramic wares had developed into porcelain, which Chinese defined as high-fired ware. By the late Sui dynasty (581–618 CE) and early Tang dynasty (618–907 CE), the now-standard requirements of whiteness and translucency had been achieved, in types such as Ding ware. The wares were already exported to the Islamic world, where they were highly prized.

Eventually, porcelain and the expertise required to create it began to spread into other areas of East Asia. During the Song dynasty (960–1279 CE), artistry and production had reached new heights. The manufacture of porcelain became highly organised, and the dragon kilns excavated from this period could fire as many as 25,000 pieces at a time, and over 100,000 by the end of the period. While Xing ware is regarded as among the greatest of the Tang dynasty porcelain, Ding ware became the premier porcelain of the Song dynasty. By the Ming dynasty, production of the finest wares for the court was concentrated in a single city, and Jingdezhen porcelain, originally owned by the imperial government, remains the centre of Chinese porcelain production. By the time of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644 CE), porcelain wares were being exported to Asia and Europe. Some of the most well-known Chinese porcelain art styles arrived in Europe during this era, such as the coveted "blue-and-white" wares. The Ming dynasty controlled much of the porcelain trade, which was expanded to Asia, Africa and Europe via the Silk Road. In 1517, Portuguese merchants began direct trade by sea with the Ming dynasty, and in 1598, Dutch merchants followed.

Some porcelains were more highly valued than others in imperial China. The most valued types can be identified by their association with the court, either as tribute offerings, or as products of kilns under imperial supervision. Since the Yuan dynasty, the largest and best centre of production has made Jingdezhen porcelain. During the Ming dynasty, Jingdezhen porcelain become a source of imperial pride. The Yongle emperor erected a white porcelain brick-faced pagoda at Nanjing, and an exceptionally smoothly glazed type of white porcelain is peculiar to his reign. Jingdezhen porcelain's fame came to a peak during the Qing dynasty.

Japanese porcelain

Although the Japanese elite were keen importers of Chinese porcelain from early on, they were not able to make their own until the arrival of Korean potters that were taken captive during the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598). They brought an improved type of kiln, and one of them spotted a source of porcelain clay near Arita, and before long several kilns had started in the region. At first their wares were similar to the cheaper and cruder Chinese porcelains with underglaze blue decoration that were already widely sold in Japan; this style was to continue for cheaper everyday wares until the 20th century.

Exports to Europe began around 1660, through the Chinese and the Dutch East India Company, the only Europeans allowed a trading presence. Chinese exports had been seriously disrupted by civil wars as the Ming dynasty fell apart, and the Japanese exports increased rapidly to fill the gap. At first the wares used European shapes and mostly Chinese decoration, as the Chinese had done, but gradually original Japanese styles developed.

Nabeshima ware was produced in kilns owned by the families of feudal lords, and were decorated in the Japanese tradition, much of it related to textile design. This was not initially exported, but used for gifts to other aristocratic families. Imari ware and Kakiemon are broad terms for styles of export porcelain with overglaze "enamelled" decoration begun in the early period, both with many sub-types.

A great range of styles and manufacturing centres were in use by the start of the 19th century, and as Japan opened to trade in the second half, exports expanded hugely and quality generally declined. Much traditional porcelain continues to replicate older methods of production and styles, and there are several modern industrial manufacturers. By the early 1900s, Filipino porcelain artisans working in Japanese porcelain centres for much of their lives, later on introduced the craft into the native population in the Philippines, although oral literature from Cebu in the central Philippines have noted that porcelain were already being produced by the natives locally during the time of Cebu's early rulers, prior to the arrival of colonizers in the 16th century.

Korean porcelain

Olive green glaze was introduced in the late Silla Dynasty. Most ceramics from Silla are generally leaf-shaped, which is a very common shape in Korea. Korean celadon comes in a variety of colors, from turquoise to putty. Additionally, thIn the late 13th century, the Inlay technique of expressing pigmented patterns by filling the hollow parts of pottery with white and red clay was frequently used. The main difference from those in China is that many specimens have inlay decoration under the glaze.

Most Korean ceramics from the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) are of excellent decorative quality. It usually has a melon shape and is asymmetrical.

European porcelain
Imported Chinese porcelains were held in such great esteem in Europe that in English china became a commonly–used synonym for the Italian-derived porcelain. The first mention of porcelain in Europe is in Il Milione by Marco Polo in the 13th century. Apart from copying Chinese porcelain in faience (tin glazed earthenware), the soft-paste Medici porcelain in 16th-century Florence was the first real European attempt to reproduce it, with little success.

Early in the 16th century, Portuguese traders returned home with samples of kaolin, which they discovered in China to be essential in the production of porcelain wares. However, the Chinese techniques and composition used to manufacture porcelain were not yet fully understood. Countless experiments to produce porcelain had unpredictable results and met with failure. In the German state of Saxony, the search concluded in 1708 when Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus produced a hard, white, translucent type of porcelain specimen with a combination of ingredients, including kaolin and alabaster, mined from a Saxon mine in Colditz. It was a closely guarded trade secret of the Saxon enterprise.

In 1712, many of the elaborate Chinese porcelain manufacturing secrets were revealed throughout Europe by the French Jesuit father Francois Xavier d'Entrecolles and soon published in the Lettres édifiantes et curieuses de Chine par des missionnaires jésuites. The secrets, which d'Entrecolles read about and witnessed in China, were now known and began seeing use in Europe.

Meissen
Von Tschirnhaus along with Johann Friedrich Böttger were employed by Augustus II, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, who sponsored their work in Dresden and in the town of Meissen. Tschirnhaus had a wide knowledge of science and had been involved in the European quest to perfect porcelain manufacture when, in 1705, Böttger was appointed to assist him in this task. Böttger had originally been trained as a pharmacist; after he turned to alchemical research, he claimed to have known the secret of transmuting dross into gold, which attracted the attention of Augustus. Imprisoned by Augustus as an incentive to hasten his research, Böttger was obliged to work with other alchemists in the futile search for transmutation and was eventually assigned to assist Tschirnhaus. One of the first results of the collaboration between the two was the development of a red stoneware that resembled that of Yixing.

A workshop note records that the first specimen of hard, white and vitrified European porcelain was produced in 1708. At the time, the research was still being supervised by Tschirnhaus; however, he died in October of that year. It was left to Böttger to report to Augustus in March 1709 that he could make porcelain. For this reason, credit for the European discovery of porcelain is traditionally ascribed to him rather than Tschirnhaus.

The Meissen factory was established in 1710 after the development of a kiln and a glaze suitable for use with Böttger's porcelain, which required firing at temperatures of up to 1400 °C to achieve translucence. Meissen porcelain was once-fired, or green-fired. It was noted for its great resistance to thermal shock; a visitor to the factory in Böttger's time reported having seen a white-hot teapot being removed from the kiln and dropped into cold water without damage. Although widely disbelieved this has been replicated in modern times.

Russian porcelain
In 1744, Elizabeth of Russia signed an agreement to establish the first porcelain manufactory; previously it had to be imported. The technology of making "white gold" was carefully hidden by its creators. Peter the Great had tried to reveal the "big porcelain secret", and sent an agent to the Meissen factory, and finally hired a porcelain master from abroad. This relied on the research of the Russian scientist Dmitry Ivanovich Vinogradov. His development of porcelain manufacturing technology was not based on secrets learned through third parties, but was the result of painstaking work and careful analysis. Thanks to this, by 1760, Imperial Porcelain Factory, Saint Petersburg became a major European factories producing tableware, and later porcelain figurines. Eventually other factories opened: Gardner porcelain, Dulyovo (1832), Kuznetsovsky porcelain, Popovsky porcelain, and Gzhel.

During the twentieth century, under Soviet governments, ceramics continued to be a popular artform, supported by the state, with an increasingly propagandist role. One artist, who worked at the Baranovsky Porcelain Factory and at the Experimental Ceramic and Artistic Plant in Kyiv, was Oksana Zhnikrup, whose porcelain figures of the ballet and the circus were widely known.

Soft paste porcelain

The pastes produced by combining clay and powdered glass (frit) were called Frittenporzellan in Germany and frita in Spain. In France they were known as pâte tendre and in England as "soft-paste". They appear to have been given this name because they do not easily retain their shape in the wet state, or because they tend to slump in the kiln under high temperature, or because the body and the glaze can be easily scratched.

Experiments at Rouen produced the earliest soft-paste in France, but the first important French soft-paste porcelain was made at the Saint-Cloud factory before 1702. Soft-paste factories were established with the Chantilly manufactory in 1730 and at Mennecy in 1750. The Vincennes porcelain factory was established in 1740, moving to larger premises at Sèvres in 1756. Vincennes soft-paste was whiter and freer of imperfections than any of its French rivals, which put Vincennes/Sèvres porcelain in the leading position in France and throughout the whole of Europe in the second half of the 18th century.
 * France

Doccia porcelain of Florence was founded in 1735 and remains in production, unlike Capodimonte porcelain which was moved from Naples to Madrid by its royal owner, after producing from 1743 to 1759. After a gap of 15 years Naples porcelain was produced from 1771 to 1806, specializing in Neoclassical styles. All these were very successful, with large outputs of high-quality wares. In and around Venice, Francesco Vezzi was producing hard-paste from around 1720 to 1735; survivals of Vezzi porcelain are very rare, but less so than from the Hewelke factory, which only lasted from 1758 to 1763. The soft-paste Cozzi factory fared better, lasting from 1764 to 1812. The Le Nove factory produced from about 1752 to 1773, then was revived from 1781 to 1802.
 * Italy

The first soft-paste in England was demonstrated by Thomas Briand to the Royal Society in 1742 and is believed to have been based on the Saint-Cloud formula. In 1749, Thomas Frye took out a patent on a porcelain containing bone ash. This was the first bone china, subsequently perfected by Josiah Spode. William Cookworthy discovered deposits of kaolin in Cornwall, and his factory at Plymouth, established in 1768, used kaolin and china stone to make hard-paste porcelain with a body composition similar to that of the Chinese porcelains of the early 18th century. But the great success of English ceramics in the 18th century was based on soft-paste porcelain, and refined earthenwares such as creamware, which could compete with porcelain, and had devastated the faience industries of France and other continental countries by the end of the century. Most English porcelain from the late 18th century to the present is bone china.
 * England

In the twenty-five years after Briand's demonstration, a number of factories were founded in England to make soft-paste tableware and figures:
 * Chelsea (1743)
 * Bow (1745)
 * St James's (1748)
 * Bristol porcelain (1748)
 * Longton Hall (1750)
 * Royal Crown Derby (1750 or 1757)
 * Royal Worcester (1751)
 * Lowestoft porcelain (1757)
 * Wedgwood (1759)
 * Spode (1767)

Electric insulators
Porcelain has been used for electrical insulators since at least 1878, with another source reporting earlier use of porcelain insulators on the telegraph line between Frankfurt and Berlin. It is widely used for insulators in electrical power transmission system due to its high stability of electrical, mechanical and thermal properties even in harsh environments.

A body for electrical porcelain typically contains varying proportions of ball clay, kaolin, feldspar, quartz, calcined alumina and calcined bauxite. A variety of secondary materials can also be used, such as binders which burn off during firing. UK manufacturers typically fired the porcelain to a maximum of 1200°C in an oxidising atmosphere, whereas reduction firing is standard practice at Chinese manufacturers.

In 2018, a porcelain bushing insulator manufactured by NGK in Handa, Aichi Prefecture, Japan was certified as the world's largest ceramic structure by Guinness World Records. It is 11.3 m in height and 1.5 m in diameter.

The global market for high-voltage insulators was estimated to be worth US$4.95 billion in 2015, of which porcelain accounts for just over 48%.

Chemical porcelain
A type of porcelain characterised by low thermal expansion, high mechanical strength and high chemical resistance. Used for laboratory ware, such as reaction vessels, combustion boats, evaporating dishes and Büchner funnels. Raw materials for the body include kaolin, quartz, feldspar, calcined alumina, and possibly also low percentages of other materials. A number of International standards specify the properties of the porcelain, such as ASTM C515.

Tiles
A porcelain tile has been defined as 'a ceramic mosaic tile or paver that is generally made by the dust-pressed method of a composition resulting in a tile that is dense, fine-grained, and smooth with sharply formed face, usually impervious and having colors of the porcelain type which are usually of a clear, luminous type or granular blend thereof.' Manufacturers are found across the world with Italy being the global leader, producing over 380 million square metres in 2006.

Historic examples of rooms decorated entirely in porcelain tiles can be found in several palaces including ones at Galleria Sabauda in Turin, Museo di Doccia in Sesto Fiorentino, Museo di Capodimonte in Naples, the Royal Palace of Madrid and the nearby Royal Palace of Aranjuez. and the Porcelain Tower of Nanjing. More recent examples include the Dakin Building in Brisbane, California and the Gulf Building in Houston, Texas, which when constructed in 1929 had a 21 m porcelain logo on its exterior.

Sanitaryware
Because of its durability, inability to rust and impermeability, glazed porcelain has been in use for personal hygiene since at least the third quarter of the 17th century. During this period, porcelain chamber pots were commonly found in higher-class European households, and the term "bourdaloue" was used as the name for the pot.

Whilst modern sanitaryware, such as closets and washbasins, is made of ceramic materials, porcelain is no longer used and vitreous china is the dominant material. Bath tubs are not made of porcelain, but of enamel on a metal base, usually of cast iron. Porcelain enamel is a marketing term used in the US, and is not porcelain but vitreous enamel.

Dental porcelain
Dental porcelain is used for crowns, bridges and veneers. A formulation of dental porcelain is 70-85% feldspar, 12-25% quartz, 3-5% kaolin, up to 15% glass and around 1% colourants.

Manufacturers

 * The Americas
 * Brazil
 * Germer Porcelanas Finas
 * Porcelana Schmidt
 * United States
 * Blue Ridge
 * CoorsTek, Inc.
 * Franciscan
 * Lenox
 * Lotus Ware
 * Pickard China
 * Asia
 * China
 * Ding ware
 * Jingdezhen porcelain
 * Iran
 * Maghsoud Group of Factories, (1993–present)
 * Zarin Iran Porcelain Industries, (1881–present)
 * Japan
 * Hirado ware
 * Kakiemon
 * Nabeshima ware
 * Narumi
 * Noritake
 * Malaysia
 * Royal Selangor
 * South Korea
 * Haengnam Chinaware
 * Hankook Chinaware
 * Sri Lanka
 * Dankotuwa Porcelain
 * Noritake Lanka Porcelain
 * Royal Fernwood Porcelain
 * Taiwan
 * Franz Collection
 * Turkey
 * Yildiz Porselen (1890–1936, 1994–present)
 * Kütahya Porselen (1970–present)
 * Güral Porselen (1989–present)
 * Porland Porselen (1976–present)
 * Istanbul Porselen (1963 – early 1990s)
 * Sümerbank Porselen (1957–1994)
 * United Arab Emirates
 * RAK Porcelain
 * Vietnam
 * Minh Long I porcelain (1970–present)
 * Bát Tràng porcelain (1352–present)
 * Europe
 * Austria
 * Vienna Porcelain Manufactory, 1718–1864
 * Vienna Porcelain Manufactory Augarten, 1923–present
 * Croatia
 * Inkerpor (1953–present)
 * Czech Republic
 * Haas & Czjzek, Horní Slavkov (1792–2011)
 * Thun 1794, Klášterec nad Ohří (1794–present)
 * Český porcelán a.s., Dubí, Eichwelder Porzellan und Ofenfabriken Bloch & Co. Böhmen (1864–present)
 * Rudolf Kämpf, Nové Sedlo (Sokolov District) (1907–present)
 * Denmark
 * Aluminia
 * Bing & Grøndahl
 * Denmark porcelain
 * P. Ipsens Enke
 * Kastrup Vaerk
 * Kronjyden
 * Porcelænshaven
 * Royal Copenhagen (1775–present)
 * GreenGate
 * Finland
 * Arabia
 * France
 * Saint-Cloud porcelain (1693–1766)
 * Chantilly porcelain (1730–1800)
 * Vincennes porcelain (1740–1756)
 * Mennecy-Villeroy porcelain (1745–1765)
 * Sèvres porcelain (1756–present)
 * Revol porcelain (1789–present)
 * Limoges porcelain
 * Haviland porcelain
 * Germany
 * Current porcelain manufacturers in Germany
 * Hungary
 * Hollóháza Porcelain Manufactory (1777–present)
 * Herend Porcelain Manufacture (1826–present)
 * Zsolnay Porcelain Manufacture (1853–present)
 * Italy
 * Richard-Ginori 1735 Manifattura di Doccia (1735–present)
 * Capodimonte porcelain (1743–1759)
 * Naples porcelain (1771–1806)
 * Manifattura Italiana Porcellane Artistiche Fabris (1922–1972)
 * Mangani SRL, Porcellane d'Arte (Florence)
 * Lithuania
 * Jiesia
 * Netherlands
 * Haagsche Plateelbakkerij, Rozenburg
 * Loosdrechts Porselein
 * Weesp Porselein
 * Norway
 * Egersund porcelain
 * Figgjo (1941–present)
 * Herrebøe porcelain
 * Porsgrund
 * Stavangerflint
 * Poland
 * AS Ćmielów
 * Fabryka Fajansu i Porcelany
 * Polskie Fabryki Porcelany "Ćmielów" i "Chodzież" S.A.
 * Kristoff Porcelana
 * Lubiana S.A.
 * Portugal
 * Vista Alegre
 * Sociedade Porcelanas de Alcobaça
 * Costa Verde (company), located in the district of Aveiro
 * Russia
 * Imperial Porcelain Factory, Saint Petersburg (1744–present)
 * Verbilki Porcelain (1766–present), Verbilki near Taldom
 * Gzhel ceramics (1802–present), Gzhel
 * Dulevo Farfor (1832–present), Likino-Dulyovo
 * Spain
 * Buen Retiro Royal Porcelain Factory (1760–1812)
 * Real Fábrica de Sargadelos (1808–present, intermittently)
 * Porvasal
 * Sweden
 * Rörstrand
 * Gustavsberg porcelain
 * Switzerland
 * Suisse Langenthal
 * United Kingdom
 * Aynsley China (1775–present)
 * Belleek (1884–present)
 * Bow porcelain factory (1747–1776)
 * Caughley porcelain
 * Chelsea porcelain factory (c. 1745; merged with Derby in 1770)
 * Coalport porcelain
 * Davenport
 * Goss crested china
 * Liverpool porcelain
 * Longton Hall porcelain
 * Lowestoft Porcelain Factory
 * Mintons Ltd (1793–1968; merged with Royal Doulton)
 * Nantgarw Pottery
 * New Hall porcelain
 * Plymouth Porcelain
 * Rockingham Pottery
 * Royal Crown Derby (1750/57–present)
 * Royal Doulton (1815–2009; acquired by Fiskars)
 * Royal Worcester (1751–2008; acquired by Portmeirion Pottery)
 * Spode (1767–2008; acquired by Portmeirion Pottery)
 * Saint James's Factory (or "Girl-in-a-Swing", 1750s)
 * Swansea porcelain
 * Vauxhall porcelain
 * Wedgwood, (factory 1759–present, porcelain 1812–1829, and modern. Acquired by Fiskars)

title: Porcelain


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Blackfoot Confederacy

The Blackfoot Confederacy, Niitsitapi, or Siksikaitsitapi (ᖹᐟᒧᐧᒣᑯ, meaning "the people" or "Blackfoot-speaking real people"), is a historic collective name for linguistically related groups that make up the Blackfoot or Blackfeet people: the Siksika ("Blackfoot"), the Kainai or Blood ("Many Chiefs"), and two sections of the Peigan or Piikani ("Splotchy Robe") – the Northern Piikani (Aapátohsipikáni) and the Southern Piikani (Amskapi Piikani or Pikuni). Broader definitions include groups such as the Tsúùtínà (Sarcee) and A'aninin (Gros Ventre) who spoke quite different languages but allied with or joined the Blackfoot Confederacy.

Historically, the member peoples of the Confederacy were nomadic bison hunters and trout fishermen, who ranged across large areas of the northern Great Plains of western North America, specifically the semi-arid shortgrass prairie ecological region. They followed the bison herds as they migrated between what are now the United States and Canada, as far north as the Bow River. In the first half of the 18th century, they acquired horses and firearms from white traders and their Cree and Assiniboine go-betweens. The Blackfoot used these to expand their territory at the expense of neighboring tribes.

Today, three Blackfoot First Nation band governments (the Siksika, Kainai, and Piikani Nations) reside in the Canadian province of Alberta, while the Blackfeet Nation is a federally recognized Native American tribe of Southern Piikani in Montana, United States. Additionally, the Gros Ventre are members of the federally recognized Fort Belknap Indian Community of the Fort Belknap Reservation of Montana in the United States and the Tsuutʼina Nation is a First Nation band government in Alberta, Canada.

Government
The four Blackfoot nations come together to make up what is known as the Blackfoot Confederacy, meaning that they have banded together to help one another. The nations have their own separate governments ruled by a head chief, but regularly come together for religious and social celebrations.

Originally the Blackfoot/Plains Confederacy consisted of three peoples ("nation", "tribes", "tribal nations") based on kinship and dialect, but all speaking the common language of Blackfoot, one of the Algonquian languages family. The three were the Piikáni (historically called "Piegan Blackfeet" in English-language sources), the Káínaa (called "Bloods"), and the Siksikáwa ("Blackfoot"). They later allied with the unrelated Tsuu T'ina ("Sarcee"), who became merged into the Confederacy and, (for a time) with the Atsina, or A'aninin (Gros Ventre).

Each of these highly decentralized peoples were divided into many bands, which ranged in size from 10 to 30 lodges, or about 80 to 240 persons. The band was the basic unit of organization for hunting and defence.

The Confederacy occupied a large territory where they hunted and foraged; in the 19th century it was divided by the current Canada–US international border. But during the late nineteenth century, both governments forced the peoples to end their nomadic traditions and settle on "Indian reserves" (Canadian terminology) or "Indian reservations" (US terminology). The South Peigan are the only group who chose to settle in Montana. The other three Blackfoot-speaking peoples and the Sarcee are located in Alberta. Together, the Blackfoot-speakers call themselves the Niitsítapi (the "Original People"). After leaving the Confederacy, the Gros Ventres also settled on a reservation in Montana.

When these peoples were forced to end their nomadic traditions, their social structures changed. Tribal nations, which had formerly been mostly ethnic associations, were institutionalized as governments (referred to as "tribes" in the United States and "bands" or "First Nations" in Canada). The Piegan were divided into the North Peigan in Alberta, and the South Peigan in Montana.

History
The Confederacy had a territory that stretched from the North Saskatchewan River (called Ponoká'sisaahta) along what is now Edmonton, Alberta, in Canada, to the Yellowstone River (called Otahkoiitahtayi) of Montana in the United States, and from the Rocky Mountains (called Miistakistsi) and along the South Saskatchewan River to the present Alberta-Saskatchewan border (called Kaayihkimikoyi), east past the Cypress Hills. They called their tribal territory Niitsitpiis-stahkoii (ᖹᐟᒧᐧᐨᑯᐧ ᓴᐦᖾᐟ)- "Original People s Land." To the east, the Innu and Naskapi called their territory Nitassinan – "Our Land." They had adopted the use of the horse from other Plains tribes, probably by the early eighteenth century, which gave them expanded range and mobility, as well as advantages in hunting.

The basic social unit of the Niitsitapi above the family was the band, varying from about 10 to 30 lodges, about 80 to 241 people. This size group was large enough to defend against attack and to undertake communal hunts, but was also small enough for flexibility. Each band consisted of a respected leader, possibly his brothers and parents, and others who were not related. Since the band was defined by place of residence, rather than by kinship, a person was free to leave one band and join another, which tended to ameliorate leadership disputes. As well, should a band fall upon hard times, its members could split up and join other bands. In practice, bands were constantly forming and breaking up. The system maximized flexibility and was an ideal organization for a hunting people on the northwestern Great Plains.

During the summer, the people assembled for nation gatherings. In these large assemblies, warrior societies played an important role for the men. Membership into these societies was based on brave acts and deeds.

For almost half the year in the long northern winter, the Niitsitapi lived in their winter camps along a wooded river valley. They were located perhaps a day's march apart, not moving camp unless food for the people and horses, or firewood became depleted. Where there was adequate wood and game resources, some bands would camp together. During this part of the year, buffalo also wintered in wooded areas, where they were partially sheltered from storms and snow. They were easier prey as their movements were hampered. In spring the buffalo moved out onto the grasslands to forage on new spring growth. The Blackfoot did not follow immediately, for fear of late blizzards. As dried food or game became depleted, the bands would split up and begin to hunt the buffalo.

In midsummer, when the chokecherries ripened, the people regrouped for their major ceremony, the Okan (Sun Dance). This was the only time of year when the four nations would assemble. The gathering reinforced the bonds among the various groups and linked individuals with the nations. Communal buffalo hunts provided food for the people, as well as offerings of the bulls' tongues (a delicacy) for the ceremonies. These ceremonies are sacred to the people. After the Okan, the people again separated to follow the buffalo. They used the buffalo hides to make their dwellings and temporary tipis.

In the fall, the people would gradually shift to their wintering areas. The men would prepare the buffalo jumps and pounds for capturing or driving the bison for hunting. Several groups of people might join at particularly good sites, such as Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump. As the buffalo were naturally driven into the area by the gradual late summer drying off of the open grasslands, the Blackfoot would carry out great communal buffalo kills.

The women processed the buffalo, preparing dried meat, and combining it for nutrition and flavor with dried fruits into pemmican, to last them through winter and other times when hunting was poor. At the end of the fall, the Blackfoot would move to their winter camps. The women worked the buffalo and other game skins for clothing, as well as to reinforce their dwellings; other elements were used to make warm fur robes, leggings, cords and other needed items. Animal sinews were used to tie arrow points and lances to throwing sticks, or for bridles for horses.

The Niitsitapi maintained this traditional way of life based on hunting bison, until the near extirpation of the bison by 1881 forced them to adapt their ways of life in response to the encroachment of the European settlers and their descendants. In the United States, they were restricted to land assigned in the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851. Nearly three decades later, they were given a distinct reservation in the Sweetgrass Hills Treaty of 1887. In 1877, the Canadian Niitsitapi signed Treaty 7 and settled on reserves in southern Alberta.

This began a period of great struggle and economic hardship; the Niitsitapi had to try to adapt to a completely new way of life. They suffered a high rate of fatalities when exposed to Eurasian diseases, for which they had no natural immunity.

Eventually, they established a viable economy based on farming, ranching, and light industry. Their population has increased to about 16,000 in Canada and 15,000 in the U.S. today. With their new economic stability, the Niitsitapi have been free to adapt their culture and traditions to their new circumstances, renewing their connection to their ancient roots.

Early history

The Niitsitapi, also known as the Blackfoot or Blackfeet Indians, reside in the Great Plains of Montana and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Originally, only one of the Niitsitapi tribes was called Blackfoot or Siksika. The name is said to have come from the color of the peoples' moccasins, made of leather. They had typically dyed or painted the soles of their moccasins black. One legendary story claimed that the Siksika walked through ashes of prairie fires, which in turn colored the bottoms of their moccasins black.

Due to language and cultural patterns, anthropologists believe the Niitsitapi did not originate in the Great Plains of the Midwest North America, but migrated from the upper Northeastern part of the country. They coalesced as a group while living in the forests of what is now the Northeastern United States. They were mostly located around the modern-day border between Canada and the state of Maine. By 1200, the Niitsitapi were moving in search of more land. They moved west and settled for a while north of the Great Lakes in present-day Canada, but had to compete for resources with existing tribes. They left the Great Lakes area and kept moving west.

When they moved, they usually packed their belongings on an A-shaped sled called a travois. The travois was designed for transport over dry land. The Blackfoot had relied on dogs to pull the travois; they did not acquire horses until the 18th century. From the Great Lakes area, they continued to move west and eventually settled in the Great Plains.

The Plains had covered approximately 780000 sqmi with the Saskatchewan River to the north, the Rio Grande to the south, the Mississippi River to the east, and the Rocky Mountains to the west. Adopting the use of the horse, the Niitsitapi established themselves as one of the most powerful Indian tribes on the Plains in the late 18th century, earning themselves the name "The Lords of the Plains." Niitsitapi stories trace their residence and possession of their plains territory to "time immemorial."

Importance and uses of bison
The Niitsitapi main source of food on the plains was the American bison (buffalo), the largest mammal in North America, standing about 6+1/2 ft tall and weighing up to 2000 lbs. Before the introduction of horses, the Niitsitapi needed other ways to get in range. The buffalo jump was one of the most common ways. The hunters would round up the buffalo into V-shaped pens, and drive them over a cliff (they hunted pronghorn antelopes in the same way). Afterwards the hunters would go to the bottom and take as much meat as they could carry back to camp. They also used camouflage for hunting. The hunters would take buffalo skins from previous hunting trips and drape them over their bodies to blend in and mask their scent. By subtle moves, the hunters could get close to the herd. When close enough, the hunters would attack with arrows or spears to kill wounded animals.

The people used virtually all parts of the body and skin. The women prepared the meat for food: by boiling, roasting or drying for jerky. This processed it to last a long time without spoiling, and they depended on bison meat to get through the winters. The winters were long, harsh, and cold due to the lack of trees in the Plains, so people stockpiled meat in summer. As a ritual, hunters often ate the bison heart minutes after the kill. The women tanned and prepared the skins to cover the tepees. These were made of log poles, with the skins draped over it. The tepee remained warm in the winter and cool in the summer, and was a great shield against the wind.

The women also made clothing from the skins, such as robes and moccasins, and made soap from the fat. Both men and women made utensils, sewing needles and tools from the bones, using tendon for fastening and binding. The stomach and bladder were cleaned and prepared for use for storing liquids. Dried bison dung was fuel for the fires. The Niitsitapi considered the animal sacred and integral to their lives.

Discovery and uses of horses
Up until around 1730, the Blackfoot traveled by foot and used dogs to carry and pull some of their goods. They had not seen horses in their previous lands, but were introduced to them on the Plains, as other tribes, such as the Shoshone, had already adopted their use. They saw the advantages of horses and wanted some. The Blackfoot called the horses ponokamita (elk dogs). The horses could carry much more weight than dogs and moved at a greater speed. They could be ridden for hunting and travel.

Horses revolutionised life on the Great Plains and soon came to be regarded as a measure of wealth. Warriors regularly raided other tribes for their best horses. Horses were generally used as universal standards of barter. Medicine men were paid for cures and healing with horses. Those who designed shields or war bonnets were also paid in horses. The men gave horses to those who were owed gifts as well as to the needy. An individual's wealth rose with the number of horses accumulated, but a man did not keep an abundance of them. The individual's prestige and status was judged by the number of horses that he could give away. For the Indians who lived on the Plains, the principal value of property was to share it with others.

After driving the hostile Shoshone and Arapaho from the Northwestern Plains, the Niitsitapi began in 1800 a long phase of keen competition in the fur trade with their former Cree allies, which often escalated militarily. In addition both groups had adapted to using horses about 1730, so by mid-century an adequate supply of horses became a question of survival. Horse theft was at this stage not only a proof of courage, but often a desperate contribution to survival, for many ethnic groups competed for hunting in the grasslands.

The Cree and Assiniboine continued horse raiding against the Gros Ventre (in Cree: Pawistiko Iyiniwak – "Rapids People" – "People of the Rapids"), allies of the Niitsitapi. The Gros Ventres were also known as Niya Wati Inew, Naywattamee ("They Live in Holes People"), because their tribal lands were along the Saskatchewan River Forks (the confluence of North and South Saskatchewan River). They had to withstand attacks of enemies with guns. In retaliation for Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) supplying their enemies with weapons, the Gros Ventre attacked and burned in 1793 South Branch House of the HBC on the South Saskatchewan River near the present village of St. Louis, Saskatchewan. Then, the tribe moved southward to the Milk River in Montana and allied themselves with the Blackfoot. The area between the North Saskatchewan River and Battle River (the name derives from the war fought between these two tribal groups) was the limit of the now warring tribal alliances.

Enemies and warrior culture
Blackfoot war parties would ride hundreds of miles on raids. A boy on his first war party was given a silly or derogatory name. But after he had stolen his first horse or killed an enemy, he was given a name to honor him. Warriors would strive to perform various acts of bravery called counting coup, in order to move up in social rank. The coups in order of importance were: taking a gun from a living enemy and or touching him directly; capturing lances, and bows; scalping an enemy; killing an enemy; freeing a tied horse from in front of an enemy lodge; leading a war party; scouting for a war party; stealing headdresses, shields, pipes (sacred ceremonial pipes); and driving a herd of stolen horses back to camp. The Niitsitapi were enemies of the Crow, Cheyenne (kiihtsipimiitapi – ″Pinto People″), and Sioux (Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota) (called pinaapisinaa – "East Cree") on the Great Plains; and the Shoshone, Flathead, Kalispel, Kootenai (called kotonáá'wa) and Nez Perce (called komonóítapiikoan) in the mountain country to their west and southwest. Their most mighty and most dangerous enemy, however, were the political/military/trading alliance of the Iron Confederacy or Nehiyaw-Pwat (in Plains Cree: Nehiyaw – 'Cree' and Pwat or Pwat-sak – 'Sioux, i.e. Assiniboine') – named after the dominating Plains Cree (called Asinaa) and Assiniboine (called Niitsísinaa – "Original Cree"). These included the Stoney (called Saahsáísso'kitaki or Sahsi-sokitaki – ″Sarcee trying to cut″), Saulteaux (or Plains Ojibwe), and Métis to the north, east and southeast.

With the expansion of the Nehiyaw-Pwat to the north, west and southwest, they integrated larger groups of Iroquois, Chipewyan, Danezaa (Dunneza – 'The real (prototypical) people'), Ktunaxa, Flathead, and later Gros Ventre (called atsíína – "Gut People" or "like a Cree"), in their local groups. Loosely allied with the Nehiyaw-Pwat, but politically independent, were neighboring tribes like the Ktunaxa, Secwepemc and in particular the arch enemy of the Blackfoot, the Crow, or Indian trading partners like the Nez Perce and Flathead.

The Shoshone acquired horses much sooner than the Blackfoot and soon occupied much of present-day Alberta, most of Montana, and parts of Wyoming, and raided the Blackfoot frequently. Once the Piegan gained access to horses of their own and guns, obtained from the HBC via the Cree and Assiniboine, the situation changed. By 1787 David Thompson reports that the Blackfoot had completely conquered most of Shoshone territory, and frequently captured Shoshone women and children and forcibly assimilated them into Blackfoot society, further increasing their advantages over the Shoshone. Thompson reports that Blackfoot territory in 1787 was from the North Saskatchewan River in the north to the Missouri River in the South, and from Rocky Mountains in the west out to a distance of 300 mi to the east.

Between 1790 and 1850, the Nehiyaw-Pwat were at the height of their power; they could successfully defend their territories against the Sioux (Lakota, Nakota and Dakota) and the Niitsitapi Confederacy. During the so-called Buffalo Wars (about 1850 – 1870), they penetrated further and further into the territory from the Niitsitapi Confederacy in search for the buffalo, so that the Piegan were forced to give way in the region of the Missouri River (in Cree: Pikano Sipi – "Muddy River", "Muddy, turbid River"), the Kainai withdrew to the Bow River and Belly River; only the Siksika could hold their tribal lands along the Red Deer River. Around 1870, the alliance between the Blackfoot and the Gros Ventre broke, and the latter began to look to their former enemies, the Southern Assiniboine (or Plains Assiniboine), for protection.

First contact with Europeans and the fur trade
Anthony Henday of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) met a large Blackfoot group in 1754 in what is now Alberta. The Blackfoot had established dealings with traders connected to the Canadian and English fur trade before meeting the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1806. Lewis and Clark and their men had embarked on mapping the Louisiana Territory and upper Missouri River for the United States government.

On their return trip from the Pacific Coast, Lewis and three of his men encountered a group of young Blackfoot warriors with a large herd of horses, and it was clear to Meriwether Lewis that they were not far from much larger groups of warriors. Lewis explained to them that the United States government wanted peace with all Indian nations, and that the US leaders had successfully formed alliances with other Indian nations. The group camped together that night, and at dawn there was a scuffle as it was discovered that the Blackfoot were trying to steal guns and run off with their horses while the Americans slept. In the ensuing struggle, one warrior was fatally stabbed and another shot by Lewis and presumed killed.

In subsequent years, American mountain men trapping in Blackfoot country generally encountered hostility. When John Colter, a member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, returned to Blackfoot country soon after, he barely escaped with his life. In 1809, Colter and his companion were trapping on the Jefferson River by canoe when they were surrounded by hundreds of Blackfoot warriors on horseback on both sides of the river bank. Colter's companion, John Potts, did not surrender and was killed. Colter was stripped of his clothes and forced to run for his life, after being given a head start (famously known in the annals of the West as "Colter's Run.") He eventually escaped by reaching a river five miles away and diving under either an island of driftwood or a beaver dam, where he remained concealed until after nightfall. He trekked another 300 miles to a fort.

In the context of shifting tribal politics due to the spread of horses and guns, the Niitsitapi initially tried to increase their trade with the HBC traders in Rupert's Land whilst blocking access to the HBC by neighboring peoples to the West. But the HBC trade eventually reached into what is now inland British Columbia.

"By the late 1820s, [this prompted] the Niitsitapiksi, and in particular the Piikani, whose territory was rich in beaver, [to] temporarily put aside cultural prohibitions and environmental constraints to trap enormous numbers of these animals and, in turn, receive greater quantities of trade items."

The HBC encouraged Niitsitapiksi to trade by setting up posts on the North Saskatchewan River, on the northern boundary of their territory. In the 1830s the Rocky Mountain region and the wider Saskatchewan District were the HBC's most profitable, and Rocky Mountain House was the HBC's busiest post. It was primarily used by the Piikani. Other Niitsitapiksi nations traded more in pemmican and buffalo skins than beaver, and visited other posts such as Fort Edmonton.

Meanwhile, in 1822, the American Fur Company entered the Upper Missouri region from the south for the first time, without Niitsitapiksi permission. This led to tensions and conflict until 1830, when peaceful trade was established. This was followed by the opening of Fort Piegan as the first American trading post in Niitsitapi territory in 1831, joined by Fort MacKenzie in 1833. The Americans offered better terms of trade and were more interested in buffalo skins than the HBC, which brought them more trade from the Niitsitapi. The HBC responded by building Bow Fort (Peigan Post) on the Bow River in 1832, but it was not a success.

In 1833, German explorer Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied and Swiss painter Karl Bodmer spent months with the Niitsitapi to get a sense of their culture. Bodmer portrayed their society in paintings and drawings.

Contact with the Europeans caused a spread of infectious diseases to the Niitsitapi, mostly cholera and smallpox. In one instance in 1837, an American Fur Company steamboat, the St. Peter's, was headed to Fort Union and several passengers contracted smallpox on the way. They continued to send a smaller vessel with supplies farther up the river to posts among the Niitsitapi. The Niitsitapi contracted the disease and eventually 6,000 died, marking an end to their dominance among tribes over the Plains. The Hudson's Bay Company did not require or help their employees get vaccinated; the English doctor Edward Jenner had developed a technique 41 years before but its use was not yet widespread.

Indian Wars
Like many other Great Plains Indian nations, the Niitsitapi often had hostile relationships with white settlers. Despite the hostilities, the Blackfoot stayed largely out of the Great Plains Indian Wars, neither fighting against nor scouting for the United States army. One of their friendly bands, however, was attacked by mistake and nearly destroyed by the US Army in the Marias Massacre on 23 January 1870, undertaken as an action to suppress violence against settlers. A friendly relationship with the North-West Mounted Police and learning of the brutality of the Marias Massacre discouraged the Blackfoot from engaging in wars against Canada and the United States.

When the Lakota, together with their Cheyenne and Arapaho allies, were fighting the United States Army, they sent runners into Blackfoot territory, urging them to join the fight. Crowfoot, one of the most influential Blackfoot chiefs, dismissed the Lakota messengers. He threatened to ally with the NWMP to fight them if they came north into Blackfoot country again. News of Crowfoot's loyalty reached Ottawa and from there London; Queen Victoria praised Crowfoot and the Blackfoot for their loyalty. Despite his threats, Crowfoot later met those Lakota who had fled with Sitting Bull into Canada after defeating George Armstrong Custer and his battalion at the Battle of Little Big Horn. Crowfoot considered the Lakota then to be refugees and was sympathetic to their strife, but retained his anti-war stance. Sitting Bull and Crowfoot fostered peace between the two nations by a ceremonial offering of tobacco, ending hostilities between them. Sitting Bull was so impressed by Crowfoot that he named one of his sons after him.

The Blackfoot also chose to stay out of the North-West Rebellion, led by the famous Métis leader Louis Riel. Louis Riel and his men added to the already unsettled conditions facing the Blackfoot by camping near them. They tried to spread discontent with the government and gain a powerful ally. The North-West Rebellion was made up mostly of Métis, Assiniboine (Nakota) and Plains Cree, who all fought against European encroachment and destruction of Bison herds. The Plains Cree were one of the Blackfoot's most hated enemies; however, the two nations made peace when Crowfoot adopted Poundmaker, an influential Cree chief and great peacemaker, as his son. Although he refused to fight, Crowfoot had sympathy for those with the rebellion, especially the Cree led by such notable chiefs as Poundmaker, Big Bear, Wandering Spirit and Fine-Day.

When news of continued Blackfoot neutrality reached Ottawa, Lord Lansdowne, the governor general, expressed his thanks to Crowfoot again on behalf of the Queen back in London. The cabinet of John A. Macdonald (the current Prime Minister of Canada at the time) gave Crowfoot a round of applause.

Further encroachment by Canada and United States

During the mid-1800s, the Niitsitapi faced a dwindling food supply, as European-American hunters were hired by the U.S. government to kill bison so the Blackfeet would remain in their reservation. Settlers were also encroaching on their territory. Without the buffalo, the Niitsitapi were forced to depend on the United States government for food supplies. In 1855, the Niitsitapi chief Lame Bull made a peace treaty with the United States government. The Lame Bull Treaty promised the Niitsitapi $20,000 annually in goods and services in exchange for their moving onto a reservation.

In 1860, very few buffalo were left, and the Niitsitapi became completely dependent on government supplies. Often the food was spoiled by the time they received it, or supplies failed to arrive at all. Hungry and desperate, Blackfoot raided white settlements for food and supplies, and outlaws on both sides stirred up trouble.

Events were catalyzed by Owl Child, a young Piegan warrior who stole a herd of horses in 1867 from an American trader named Malcolm Clarke. Clarke retaliated by tracking Owl Child down and severely beating him in full view of Owl Child's camp, and humiliating him. According to Piegan oral history, Clarke had also raped Owl Child's wife. But, Clarke was long married to Coth-co-co-na, a Piegan woman who was Owl Child's cousin. The raped woman gave birth to a child as a result of the rape, which oral history said was stillborn or killed by band elders. Two years after the beating, in 1869 Owl Child and some associates killed Clarke at his ranch after dinner, and severely wounded his son Horace. Public outcry from news of the event led to General Philip Sheridan to dispatch a band of cavalry, led by Major Eugene Baker, to find Owl Child and his camp and punish them.

On 23 January 1870, a camp of Piegan Indians were spotted by army scouts and reported to the dispatched cavalry, but it was mistakenly identified as a hostile band. Around 200 soldiers surrounded the camp the following morning and prepared for an ambush. Before the command to fire, the chief Heavy Runner was alerted to soldiers on the snowy bluffs above the encampment. He walked toward them, carrying his safe-conduct paper. Heavy Runner and his band of Piegans shared peace between American settlers and troops at the time of the event. Heavy Runner was shot and killed by army scout Joe Cobell, whose wife was part of the camp of the hostile Mountain Chief, further along the river, from whom he wanted to divert attention. Fellow scout Joe Kipp had realized the error and tried to signal the troops. He was threatened by the cavalry for reporting that the people they attacked were friendly.

Following the death of Heavy Runner, the soldiers attacked the camp. According to their count, they killed 173 Piegan and suffered just one U.S. Army soldier casualty, who fell off his horse and broke his leg, dying of complications. Most of the victims were women, children and the elderly, as most of the younger men were out hunting. The Army took 140 Piegan prisoner and then released them. With their camp and belongings destroyed, they suffered terribly from exposure, making their way as refugees to Fort Benton.

"The greatest slaughter of Indians ever made by U.S. Troops"

As reports of the massacre gradually were learned in the east, members of the United States Congress and press were outraged. General William Tecumseh Sherman reported that most of the killed were warriors under Mountain Chief. An official investigation never occurred, and no official monument marks the spot of the massacre. Compared to events such as the massacres at Wounded Knee and Sand Creek, the Marias Massacre remains largely unknown. But, it confirmed President Ulysses S. Grant in his decision not to allow the Army to take over the Bureau of Indian Affairs, as it had been suggesting to combat corruption among Indian agents. Grant chose to appoint numerous Quakers to those positions as he pursued a peace policy with Native Americans.

The Cree and Assiniboine also suffered from the dwindling herds of the buffalo. By 1850 herds were found almost exclusively on the territory of the Blackfoot. Therefore, in 1870 various Nehiyaw-Pwat bands began a final effort to get hold of their prey, by beginning a war. They hoped to defeat the Blackfoot weakened by smallpox and attacked a camp near Fort Whoop-Up (called Akaisakoyi – "Many Dead"). But they were defeated in the so-called Battle of the Belly River (near Lethbridge, called Assini-etomochi – "where we slaughtered the Cree") and lost over 300 warriors. The next winter the hunger compelled them to negotiate with the Niitsitapi, with whom they made a final lasting peace.

The United States passed laws that adversely affected the Niitsitapi. In 1874, the US Congress voted to change the Niitsitapi reservation borders without discussing it with the Niitsitapi. They received no other land or compensation for the land lost, and in response, the Kainai, Siksika, and Piegan moved to Canada; only the Pikuni remained in Montana.

The winter of 1883–1884 became known as "Starvation Winter" because no government supplies came in, and the buffalo were gone. That winter, 600 Niitsitapi died of hunger.

In efforts to assimilate the Native Americans to European-American ways, in 1898, the government dismantled tribal governments and outlawed the practice of traditional Indian religions. They required Blackfoot children to go to boarding schools, where they were forbidden to speak their native language, practise customs, or wear traditional clothing. In 1907, the United States government adopted a policy of allotment of reservation land to individual heads of families to encourage family farming and break up the communal tribal lands. Each household received a 160 acre farm, and the government declared the remainder "surplus" to the tribe's needs. It put it up for sale for development. The allotments were too small to support farming on the arid plains. A 1919 drought destroyed crops and increased the cost of beef. Many Indians were forced to sell their allotted land and pay taxes which the government said they owed.

In 1934 the Indian Reorganization Act, passed by the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration, ended allotments and allowed the tribes to choose their own government. They were also allowed to practise their cultures. In 1935, the Blackfeet Nation of Montana began a Tribal Business Council. After that, they wrote and passed their own Constitution, with an elected representative government.

Electing a leader
Family was highly valued by the Blackfoot Indians. For traveling, they also split into bands of 20–30 people, but would come together for times of celebration. They valued leadership skills and chose the chiefs who would run their settlements wisely. During times of peace, the people would elect a peace chief, meaning someone who could lead the people and improve relations with other tribes. The title of war chief could not be gained through election and needed to be earned by successfully performing various acts of bravery including touching a living enemy. Blackfoot bands often had minor chiefs in addition to an appointed head chief.

Societies

Within the Blackfoot nation, there were different societies to which people belonged, each of which had functions for the tribe. Young people were invited into societies after proving themselves by recognized passages and rituals. For instance, young men had to perform a vision quest, begun by a spiritual cleansing in a sweat lodge. They went out from the camp alone for four days of fasting and praying. Their main goal was to see a vision that would explain their future. After having the vision, a youth returned to the village ready to join society.

In a warrior society, the men had to be prepared for battle. Again, the warriors would prepare by spiritual cleansing, then paint themselves symbolically; they often painted their horses for war as well. Leaders of the warrior society carried spears or lances called a coup stick, which was decorated with feathers, skin, and other tokens. They won prestige by "counting coup", tapping the enemy with the stick and getting away.

Members of the religious society protected sacred Blackfoot items and conducted religious ceremonies. They blessed the warriors before battle. Their major ceremony was the Sun Dance, or Medicine Lodge Ceremony. By engaging in the Sun Dance, their prayers would be carried up to the Creator, who would bless them with well-being and abundance of buffalo.

Women's societies also had important responsibilities for the communal tribe. They designed refined quillwork on clothing and ceremonial shields, helped prepare for battle, prepared skins and cloth to make clothing, cared for the children and taught them tribal ways, skinned and tanned the leathers used for clothing and other purposes, prepared fresh and dried foods, and performed ceremonies to help hunters in their journeys.

Ethnobotany
Sage and sweet grass are both used by Blackfoot and other Plains tribes for ceremonial purposes and are considered sacred plants. Sage and sweet grass are burned with the user inhaling and covering themselves in the smoke in a process known widely as smudging. Sage is said to rid the body of negative emotions such as anger. Sweet grass is said to draw in positive energy. Both are used for purification purposes. The pleasant and natural odor of the burning grass is said to attract spirits. Sweet grass is prepared for ceremony by braiding the stems together then drying them before burning.

Sweet grass is also often present and burned in pipe-smoking mixtures alongside bearberry and red willow plants. The smoke from the pipe is said to carry the users prayers up to the creator with the rising smoke. Large medicine bags often decorated with ornate beaded designs were used by medicine men to carry sage, sweet grass, and other important plants. Blackfoot also used sweet grass smoke, or sachets of sweet grass in their clothing, as an effective insect repellent.

They apply a poultice of chewed roots Asclepias viridiflora to swellings, to "diarrhea rash", to rashes, to the sore gums of nursing infants and to sore eyes. They also chew the root of Asclepias viridiflora for sore throats, and use the plant to spice soups, and use the fresh roots for food. They make use of Viola adunca, applying an infusion of the roots and leaves to sore and swollen joints, giving an infusion of the leaves and roots to asthmatic children, and using the plant to dye their arrows blue. They put Carex in moccasins to protect the feet during winter horse stealing expeditions.

Marriage
In the Blackfoot culture, men were responsible for choosing their marriage partners, but women had the choice to accept them or not. The male had to show the woman's father his skills as a hunter or warrior. If the father was impressed and approved of the marriage, the man and woman would exchange gifts of horses and clothing and were considered married. The married couple would reside in their own tipi or with the husband's family. Although the man was permitted more than one wife, typically he only chose one. In cases of more than one wife, quite often the male would choose a sister of the wife, believing that sisters would not argue as much as total strangers.

Responsibilities and clothing
In a typical Blackfoot family, the father would go out and hunt and bring back supplies that the family might need. The mother would stay close to home and watch over the children while the father was out. The children were taught basic survival skills and culture as they grew up. It was generally said that both boys and girls learned to ride horses early. Boys would usually play with toy bows and arrows until they were old enough to learn how to hunt.

They would also play a popular game called shinny, which later became known as ice hockey. They used a long curved wooden stick to knock a ball, made of baked clay covered with buckskin, over a goal line. Girls were given a doll to play with, which also doubled as a learning tool because it was fashioned with typical tribal clothing and designs and also taught the young women how to care for a child. As they grew older, more responsibilities were placed upon their shoulders. The girls were then taught to cook, prepare hides for leather, and gather wild plants and berries. The boys were held accountable for going out with their father to prepare food by means of hunting. Typically clothing was made primarily of softened and tanned antelope and deer hides. The women would make and decorate the clothes for everyone in the tribe. Men wore moccasins, long leggings that went up to their hips, a loincloth, and a belt. Occasionally they would wear shirts but generally they would wrap buffalo robes around their shoulders. The distinguished men of bravery would wear a necklace made of grizzly bear claws.

Boys dressed much like the older males, wearing leggings, loincloths, moccasins, and occasionally an undecorated shirt. They kept warm by wearing a buffalo robe over their shoulders or over their heads if it became cold. Women and girls wore dresses made from two or three deerskins. The women wore decorative earrings and bracelets made from sea shells, obtained through trade with distant tribes, or different types of metal. They would sometimes wear beads in their hair or paint the part in their hair red, which signified that they were old enough to bear children.

Headdresses
Similar to other Indigenous Peoples of the Great Plains, the Blackfoot developed a variety of different headdresses that incorporated elements of creatures important to them; these served different purposes and symbolized different associations. The typical war bonnet was made from eagle feathers, because the bird was considered powerful. It was worn by prestigious warriors and chiefs (including war-chiefs) of the Blackfoot. The straight-up headdress is a uniquely Blackfoot headdress that, like the war bonnet, is made with eagle feathers. The feathers on the straight-up headdress point directly straight upwards from the rim (hence the name). Often a red plume is attached to the front of the headdress; it also points straight upward.

The split-horn headdress was very popular among Northern Plains Indians, particularly those nations of the Blackfoot Confederacy. Many warrior societies, including the Horn Society of the Blackfoot, wore the split-horn headdress. The split-horn headdress was made from a single bison horn, split in two and reshaped as slimmer versions of a full-sized bison horn, and polished. The horns were attached to a beaded, rimmed felt hat. Furs from weasels (taken when carrying heavy winter coats) were attached to the top of the headdress, and dangled from the sides. The side furs were often finished with bead work where attached to the headdress. A similar headdress, called the antelope horn headdress, was made in a similar fashion using the horn or horns from a pronghorn antelope.

Blackfoot men, particularly warriors, sometimes wore a roach made from porcupine hair. The hairs of the porcupine are most often dyed red. Eagle and other bird feathers were occasionally attached to the roach.

Buffalo scalps, often with horns still attached and often with a beaded rim, were also worn. Fur "turbans" made from soft animal fur (most often otter) were also popular. Buffalo scalps and fur turbans were worn in the winter to protect the head from the cold.

The Blackfoot have continued to wear traditional headdresses at special ceremonies. They are worn mostly by elected chiefs, members of various traditional societies (including the Horn, Crazy Dog and Motokik societies), powwow dancers and spiritual leaders.

Sun and the Moon
One of the most famous traditions held by the Blackfoot is their story of sun and the moon. It starts with a family of a man, wife, and two sons, who live off berries and other food they can gather, as they have no bows and arrows, or other tools (albeit a stone axe). One night, the man had a dream: he was told by the dream to get a large spider web and put it on the trail where the animals roamed, and they would get caught up and could be easily killed with the stone axe he had. The man had done so and saw that it was true. One day, he came home from bringing in some fresh meat from the trail and discovered his wife to be applying perfume on herself. He thought that she must have another lover since she never did this before. He then told his wife that he was going to move a web and asked if she could bring in the meat and wood he had left outside from a previous hunt. She had reluctantly gone out and passed over a hill. The wife looked back three times and saw her husband in the same place she had left him, so she continued on to retrieve the meat. The father then asked his children if they went with their mother to find wood, but they never had. However they knew the location in which she retrieved it from.

The man set out and found the timber along with a den of rattlesnakes, one of which was his wife's lover. He set the timber on fire and killed the snakes. He knew by doing this that his wife would become enraged, so the man returned home. He told the children to flee and gave them a stick, stone, and moss to use if their mother chased after them. He remained at the house and put a web over his front door. The wife tried to get in but became stuck and had her leg cut off. She then put her head through and he cut that off also. While the body followed the husband to the creek, the head followed the children. The oldest boy saw the head behind them and threw the stick. The stick turned into a great forest. The head made it through, so the younger brother instructed the elder to throw the stone. He did so, and where the stone landed a huge mountain popped up. It spanned from big water (ocean) to big water and the head was forced to go through it, not around. The head met a group of rams and said to them she would marry their chief if they butted their way through the mountain. The chief agreed and they butted until their horns were worn down, but this still was not through. She then asked the ants if they could burrow through the mountain with the same stipulations, it was agreed and they get her the rest of the way through. The children were far ahead, but eventually saw the head rolling behind them. The boys wet the moss and wrung it out behind themselves. They were then in a different land surrounded by an expanse of water (the 'new land' is commonly interpreted as Russia, with the expanse of water being the Bering Strait). The head rolled into the water and drowned. The children decided to build a raft and head back. Once they returned to their land, however, they discovered that it was now occupied by the Crow people and the Snake people, so they decided to split up.

One brother was simple and went north to discover what he could and make people. The other was smart and went south to make white people. He taught them how to forge and make advanced weapons, which is how the Blackfoot people believe the whites became so technologically advanced. The simple brother created the Blackfoot nation and was unable to teach them anything. He became known as Left Hand, and later by the Blackfoot as Old Man (or Napiw, the Creator). The woman still chases the man: she is the moon and he is the sun, and if she ever catches him, it will always be night.

Blackfoot creation story
The creation myth is part of the oral history of the Blackfoot nation. It was said that in the beginning, Napio floated on a log with four animals. The animals were: Mameo (fish), Matcekups (frog), Maniskeo (lizard), and Sopeo (turtle). Napio sent all of them into the deep water, one after another. The first three had gone down and returned with nothing. The turtle went down and retrieved mud from the bottom and gave it to Napio.

He took the mud and rolled it in his hand and created the earth. He let it roll out of his hand and over time, it has grown to what it is today. After he created the earth, he created women first, followed by men. He had them living separately from one another. The men were shy and afraid, but Napio said to them to not fear and take one as their wife. They had done as he asked, and Napio continued to create the buffalo and bows and arrows for the people so that they could hunt them.

Ethnic divisions
The largest ethnic group in the Confederacy is the Piegan, also spelled Peigan or Pikuni. Their name derives from the Blackfoot term Piikáni. They are divided into the Piikani Nation (Aapátohsipikáni ("the companion up there") or simply Piikáni) in present-day Alberta, and the South Peigan or Piegan Blackfeet (Aamsskáápipikani) in Montana, United States. A once large and mighty division of the Piegan were the Inuk'sik ("the humans") of southwestern Montana. Today they survive only as a clan or band of the South Peigan.

The modern Kainai Nation is named for the Blackfoot-language term Káínaa, meaning "Many Chief people". These were historically also called the "Blood," from a Plains Cree name for the Kainai: Miko-Ew, meaning "stained with blood" (i.e. "the bloodthirsty, cruel"). The common English name for the tribe is Blood or the Blood tribe.

The Siksika Nation's name derives from Siksikáwa, meaning "Those of like". The Siksika also call themselves Sao-kitapiiksi, meaning "Plains People".

The Sarcee call themselves the Tsu T'ina, meaning "a great number of people." During early years of conflict, the Blackfoot called them Saahsi or Sarsi, "the stubborn ones", in their language. The Sarcee are from an entirely different language family; they are part of the Athabascan or Dené language family, most of whose members are located in the Subarctic of Northern Canada. Specifically, the Sarcee are an offshoot of the Beaver (Danezaa) people, who migrated south onto the plains sometime in the early eighteenth century. They later joined the Confederacy and essentially merged with the Pikuni ("Once had").

The Gros Ventre people call themselves the Haaninin ("white clay people"), also spelled A'aninin. The French called them Gros Ventres ("fat bellies"), misinterpreting a physical sign for waterfall; and the English called them the Fall Indians, related to waterfalls in the mountains. The Blackfoot referred to them as the Piik-siik-sii-naa ("snakes") or Atsina ("like a Cree"), because of years of enmity. Early scholars thought the A'aninin were related to the Arapaho Nation, who inhabited the Missouri Plains and moved west to Colorado and Wyoming. They were allied with the Confederacy from circa 1793 to 1861, but came to disagreement and were enemies of it thereafter.

Economy and services

Today, many of the Blackfoot live on reserves in Canada. About 8,500 live on the Montana reservation of 1500000 acre. In 1896, the Blackfoot sold a large portion of their land to the United States government, which hoped to find gold or copper deposits. No such mineral deposits were found. In 1910, the land was set aside as Glacier National Park. Some Blackfoot work there and occasional Native American ceremonies are held there.

Unemployment is a challenging problem on the Blackfeet Reservation and on Canadian Blackfoot reserves, because of their isolation from major urban areas. Many people work as farmers, but there are not enough other jobs nearby. To find work, many Blackfoot have relocated from the reservation to towns and cities. Some companies pay the Blackfoot governments to lease use of lands for extracting oil, natural gas, and other resources. The nations have operated such businesses such as the Blackfoot Writing Company, a pen and pencil factory, which opened in 1972, but it closed in the late 1990s. In Canada, the Northern Piegan make traditional craft clothing and moccasins, and the Kainai operate a shopping center and factory.

In 1974, the Blackfoot Community College, a tribal college, opened in Browning, Montana. The school is also the location of the tribal headquarters. As of 1979, the Montana state government requires all public school teachers on or near the reservation to have a background in American Indian studies.

In 1986, the Kainai Nation opened the Red Crow Community College in Stand Off, Alberta. In 1989, the Siksika tribe in Canada completed the construction of a high school to go along with its elementary school.

Traditional culture

The Blackfoot continue many cultural traditions of the past and hope to extend their ancestors' traditions to their children. They want to teach their children the Pikuni language as well as other traditional knowledge. In the early 20th century, a white woman named Frances Densmore helped the Blackfoot record their language. During the 1950s and 1960s, few Blackfoot spoke the Pikuni language. In order to save their language, the Blackfoot Council asked elders who still knew the language to teach it. The elders had agreed and succeeded in reviving the language, so today the children can learn Pikuni at school or at home. In 1994, the Blackfoot Council accepted Pikuni as the official language.

The people have revived the Black Lodge Society, responsible for protecting songs and dances of the Blackfoot. They continue to announce the coming of spring by opening five medicine bundles, one at every sound of thunder during the spring. One of the biggest celebrations is called the North American Indian Days. Lasting four days, it is held during the second week of July in Browning. Lastly, the Sun Dance, which was illegal from the 1890s–1934, has been practiced again for years. While it was illegal, the Blackfoot held it in secret. Since 1934, they have practised it every summer. The event lasts eight days – time filled with prayers, dancing, singing, and offerings to honor the Creator. It provides an opportunity for the Blackfoot to get together and share views and ideas with each other, while celebrating their culture's most sacred ceremonies.

The Blackfeet Nation in Montana have a blue tribal flag. The flag shows a ceremonial lance or coup stick with 29 feathers. The center of the flag contains a ring of 32 white and black eagle feathers. Within the ring is an outline map of the Blackfoot Reservation. Within the map is depicted a warrior's headdress and the words "Blackfeet Nation" and "Pikuni" (the name of the tribe in the Algonquian native tongue of the Blackfoot).

Notable Blackfoot people

 * Elouise Cobell, banker and activist who led the 20th-century lawsuit that forced the US Government to reform individual Indian trusts
 * Byron Chief-Moon, performer and choreographer
 * Crowfoot (ISAPO-MUXIKA – "Crow Indian's Big Foot", also known in French as Pied de Corbeau), Chief of the Big Pipes band (later renamed Moccasin band, a splinter band of the Biters band), Head Chief of the South Siksika, by 1870 one of three Head Chiefs of the Siksika or the Blackfoot proper
 * Aatsista-Mahkan ("Running Rabbit", * about 1833 – d. January 1911), since 1871 Chief of the Biters band (Ai-sik'-stuk-iks) of the Siksika, signed Treaty No.7 in 1877, along with Crowfoot, Old Sun, Red Crow, and other leaders
 * A-ca-oo-mah-ca-ye (Ac ko mok ki, Ak ko mock ki, A'kow-muk-ai – "Feathers", since he took the name Old Swan), since about 1820 Chief of the Old Feathers' band, his personal following was known as the Bad Guns band, consisted of about 400 persons, along with Old Sun and Three Suns (No-okskatos) one of three Head Chiefs of the Siksika
 * Stu-mick-o-súcks ("Buffalo Bull's Back Fat"), Head Chief of the Kainai, had his portrait painted at Fort Union in 1832
 * Faye HeavyShield, Kainai sculptor and installation artist
 * Joe Hipp, Heavyweight boxer, the first Native American to compete for the WBA World Heavyweight Title.
 * Beverly Hungry Wolf, author
 * Stephen Graham Jones, author
 * Earl Old Person (Cold Wind or Changing Home), Blackfoot tribal chairman from 1964 to 2008 and honorary lifetime chief of the Blackfoot
 * Jerry Potts (1840–1896), (also known as Ky-yo-kosi – "Bear Child"), was a Canadian-American plainsman, buffalo hunter, horse trader, interpreter, and scout of Kainai-Scottish descent. He identified as Piegan and became a minor Kainai chief.
 * Steve Reevis, actor who appeared in Fargo, Dances with Wolves, Last of the Dogmen, Comanche Moon and many other films and TV.
 * Misty Upham (1982–2014), actress
 * James Welch (1940–2003), Blackfoot-Gros Ventre author
 * The Honourable Eugene Creighton, judge of the Provincial Court of Alberta.
 * Gyasi Ross, author, attorney, musician and political activist.
 * Lily Gladstone, actress, who is part Blackfoot and Nez Perce

Representation in other media

 * Hergé's Tintin in America (1932) featured Blackfoot people.
 * Jimmy P (2013) is a Franco-American film exploring the psychoanalysis of a Blackfoot, Jimmy Picard, in the post-World War II period at a veterans' hospital by a Hungarian-French ethnologist and psychoanalyst, George Devereux. The screenplay was adapted from his book about this process, published in 1951.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Blackfoot Confederacy


text:
Clue (1998 video game)

Clue (known as Cluedo outside of North America) is a 1998 video game based on the board game of the same name. It is also known as Clue: Murder at Boddy Mansion or Cluedo: Murder at Blackwell Grange, depending on whether the country of release used American or British English.

Clue runs on Microsoft Windows. It was developed in 1998 for Hasbro Interactive by EAI. Infogrames (now Atari) took over publishing rights for the game in 2000 when Hasbro Interactive went out of business. The game, just like the board game, is meant for 3-6 players due to the six suspects. The game garnered generally positive reviews upon release.

Engineering Animation released a spin-off named Clue Chronicles: Fatal Illusion in 1999.

Development
Clue was developed by a branch of Engineering Animation, Inc. known as EAI Interactive. The development process was divided between EAI's interactive division located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and its main office in Ames, Iowa. While the majority of the programming and game design activities were conducted in Salt Lake, the Ames office focused on art and animations. The creation of the in-game mansion, built piece by piece, initially began in Ames but shifted to Salt Lake City midway through the project.

The primary motivation for developing the game was to enhance and rectify the shortcomings of the previous 1992 version, which was criticized for subpar AI, board presentations, and game mechanics. The new iteration of Clue sought to rectify these issues, with a particular emphasis on improving the artificial intelligence of computer players within the game.

The development of Clue spanned approximately one year, with funding provided by the game's publisher, Hasbro Interactive. Chris Nash, Lead Programmer on the project, described the experience as both enjoyable and challenging, especially during crunch times near the project's conclusion.

Nash explained the design process, highlighting the collaboration between the development team and Hasbro, the publisher. He acknowledged that Hasbro had the final say on graphical treatments, with one notable flaw being the lack of visual representation for suggestions made within the game. Nash discussed the challenge of aligning the UI design with both the Game Designer's vision and Hasbro's preferences. Despite some design conflicts, Nash emphasized that Hasbro's involvement generally did not involve excessive micromanagement. The characters' designs, particularly that of Miss Scarlet, underwent iterations before finalization. Nash also addressed an unconfirmed rumor that Miss Scarlet's appearance was modeled after the game's producer, Virginia.

The development team for Clue included numerous individuals who contributed to various aspects of the game, such as programming, art, design, and testing. Notable contributors included Michael S. Glosecki, Bryan Brandenburg, Tom Zahorik, Virginia McArthur, Rick Raymer, Tim Zwica, Joshua Jensen, and others.

Clue enjoyed a longer shelf life than typical for video games. It remained available for purchase years after its 1998 release, either as a standalone product or part of collections such as the Classic Game Collection. The game's availability was also promoted through tie-ins, including distribution with breakfast cereal and other Hasbro video games. The longevity of Clue was in part attributed to its association with the 50th anniversary of the original Clue board game.

Artificial Intelligence
The artificial intelligence (AI) implemented in Clue for computer-controlled opponents was considered advanced for a digital board game conversion. The AI's ability to deduce solutions led to customer complaints of cheating, although the AI simply outperformed the average human player. The AI recorded players' suggestions and tracked information often overlooked by human players. This allowed the AI to deduce which cards players possessed without explicitly asking about them.

Three difficulty levels for the AI were provided, with the hardest level utilizing the entire game history for decision-making. The AI's development was led by Mike Reed, based on a design by Bob Pennington. Independent studies demonstrated the AI's effectiveness in making deductions about the game's case file contents.

The success of Clue led to the reuse of its 3D characterizations in the Cluedo-inspired title Fatal Illusion.

Gameplay
The game has the same objective as the board game it is based on: to find the murderer, the room which housed Mr. Boddy/Dr. Black's demise, and the weapon used.

In addition to play by the original rules, Clue has an additional mode that allows movement via "points". Each turn begins with nine points and every action the player takes costs points. The player can only do as many things as he has points. For example, moving from square to square costs one point, making a suggestion costs three points. Many players prefer this mode of play as it makes the game more balanced since each player gets the same number of "moves" each turn.

A few features of Clue:
 * Detailed depictions of the characters made famous by the board game.
 * A 3D isometric view.
 * A top down view reminiscent of the board game.
 * Video clips of the characters carrying out the crime.
 * Online play via the Internet.

The Providence Journal described the game as having a "film-noir environment (like a murder-mystery movie of the 1940s)". Christian Spotlight explains that these can be switched off if one so chooses.

AllGame explains that "each room is richly created in loving detail, complete with exotic period furniture and secret passages. Both the mood and gameplay is enhanced by the deep, sonorous voice of the Butler as he announces events as they occur". Spong says: "Cluedo takes place mostly in the house where the murder was committed, creating a chilling atmosphere. Environments are beautifully rendered, featuring all characters from the original board game in full 3D".

Cnet explains, "Clue offers full animations of the characters walking from room to room. While this is interesting for a while, you'll probably want to play with the standard overhead view of the board. Along with the animations is a really good soundtrack that includes sounds of the storm outside the mansion and a forbidding butler who calls out each suggestion as it is played". It adds, "the "autonotes" feature that takes notes as to what cards you've seen doesn't record what suggestions have already been made, so making educated guesses as to which cards people don't have by their suggestions becomes a pen and paper experience".

The background music is inspired by genres such as jazz and film noir. Christian Spotlight said that "the music is a bit annoying, simply replaying the same bars over and over and over again. Thankfully, the music is quiet and not much of a distraction". It also added: "Click on some of the objects in each area and be surprised by the many short animations that unfold".

Spong says: "A multi-player option over LAN offers something new to Cluedo that only a video game can accomplish. Whether your playing head to head or co-operatively, the experience makes the game much more sociable and enjoyable. And it’s quite possible that this gameplay addition alone makes Cluedo: Murder at Blackwell Grange a thoroughly playable experience". The game was originally connected to the MSN Gaming Zone, but MSN stopped hosting the game. In-game links to online play now go to an invalid URL address. Christian Spotlight says: "The Internet play is absolutely flawless, even over a slow Internet connection. The game is stable and is supported quite well. Play with a few friends or family members around the computer or across the Internet. But for large groups in a single location, the original board game is much more easier than cramping around the computer keyboard and mouse".

The game uses an algorithm that allows it to be reusable, so that multiple levels are not needed. In Clue, "the idea is that of starting a new game each time. This particular game places a new puzzle to the player every new game so that the game is new to him/her every time" - having a different 3-card solution - despite using exactly the same game mechanics.

Opening
The video opens on a view outside Blackwell Grange/Boddy Manor. The view cuts to the inside hall with the game's murderer, holding a lit candlestick, walking down the hall and entering one of the rooms. The candle is extinguished and silhouetted via a lightning flash, an indeterminate human figure prepares to strike the victim when the video cuts to the game's title.

Deal
Mr. Boddy/Dr. Black's spirit has returned to shuffle the cards and hand them out the players, in order for them to discover how he was murdered then puts the three cards representing the game's murderer, room and weapon in a briefcase. Clue is a direct conversion of the original game as a video game.

Murder
Every possible suspect and method of killing the victim is represented via a custom cutscene when a suggestion is made. These cutscenes are played through Mr. Boddy/Dr. Black's perspective. For example:
 * The suspect stabbing with or throwing a knife at him
 * Hanging, hitting, or strangling him with the rope
 * Hitting him with the candlestick, wrench, or lead pipe
 * Shooting him with a revolver

Jail
When the game is solved, the game's true killer walks into a jail cell and the door closes. The character's actions in the scene are as follows:
 * Either Miss Scarlet (who poses), Colonel Mustard (who stands to attention), or Mrs. White (who dusts the wall) entering the jail cell
 * Mr. Green lying on the bed
 * Mrs. Peacock sitting on the bed
 * A sad Professor Plum sitting on a toilet

Reception
AllGame gave the game 3 out of 5, commenting that "the game's graphics and sound are excellent and add to the escalating feel of suspense", while adding that "so much is happening in the visually stunning backgrounds, or the deep, sinister soundtrack" that the sometimes-slow pace of the board game is unnoticeable. In a 1999 MABM review, Helen Ubinas said: "Whoever thought of moving this classic to disc had a clue". Computer Gaming World thought the game was "stunning", and thought the "sexy...mysterious" soundtrack could have been made for a feature film.

GameSpot gave it a rating of 7.6, saying: "Basically, if you love the board game, you're going to want this version. And if you haven't played the board game, buy this instead". CNET gave the game a 3.5-star rating, writing "this is probably more fun than playing the board game", while concluding that "overall, this is one of the best translations to the PC that Hasbro has ever done. Beyond the simple fault of some extra features that weren't implemented to their best effect, there aren't really many faults with the game". Christian Spotlight gave the game a rating of 4.5 out 5 stars, while Gamezebo gave the game a 4 out of 5 star rating.

The game was named "Video Game of the Week" on 1999-02-06 in the Fresno Bee.

title: Clue (1998 video game)