faience

noun

1. (countable, uncountable)A type of tin-glazed earthenware ceramic, used domestically for tableware and in architecture as a decorative material.

   “The smile, you see, is perfect—wonderful / As mere Faience! a table ornament / To suit the richest mounting.”

   “If she had wondered what Mrs. Burrage wished so particularly to talk about, she waited some time for the clearing-up of the mystery. During this interval she sat in a remarkably pretty boudoir, where there were flowers and faiences and little French pictures, and watched her hostess revolve round the subject in circles the vagueness of which she tried to dissimulate.”

   “The word Majolica, or Maiolica […] was applied to all Stanniferous faience of Italy and Spain.”

   “The white faience façade, the glazed Doultonware Carrera marble, was made locally. And being glazed, it was impervious to London's sooty atmosphere, enabling easier cleaning.”

2. (countable, uncountable)Beads or small ornaments made from frit, from the eastern Mediterranean of the Bronze and Iron Ages.

   “Beneath these booths were spread their goods; silks from Cos, bronze weapons and copper rods, or ingots from the rich mines of Cyprus, linens and muslins from Egypt; beads, idols, carven bowls, knives, glass ware, pottery in all shapes, and charms made of glazed faience or Egyptian stone; […].”