The term Unterglasur means "underglaze" and is often found as part of the word Unterglasurmalerei ("painted underglaze"). Both terms refer to the manufacturing process; items are fired once more following the decoration process and receive a final glaze finish that protects the decoration.
Its direct counterpart, of course, is the so-called Aufglasur ("overglaze") decoration, a form of finish that is often found on older decoration studio items and is very difficult to clean due to the fact that the decoration is not protected. Certain decoration aspects however profited from the absence of a final glaze, hence overglaze decorations had (and still have) their own justification.
It is also worth mentioning the Inglasur ("inglaze") decoration, a hybrid of the above two. In this case, the colour used for decoration is chemically more like a glaze and does not require a final covering as it fuses directly with the body, resulting in a permanent decoration.
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