The role of analysis in the attribution and provenancing of porcelains and shards. The selection of appropriate analytical techniques for the characterisation of the elemental and molecular species present in high-temperature fired ceramics. Selection of case studies to illustrate the importance of chemical analysis in porcelain studies, including English delftwares, shards from marine archaeological excavations (Belitung, Tang, Tek Sing, Ming), identification of Chinese blue and white porcelains, the San José galleon, the Holy Grail of shipwrecks.