China Learn

The first reliable information we have about the Chelsea porcelain works commences in 1745, though it is known that glass, and an inferior kind of porcelain like opaque glass, had been made since 1676, when some Venetians, under the auspices of the Duke of Buckingham, established a factory there.

Although the two well-known “Bee and Goat” milk jugs, marked with an impressed triangle and dated “Chelsea, 1745,” are the earliest dated pieces extant, they prove to us that the manufacture had by this time attained a high standard of excellence. An advertisement from the “Chelsea China Warehouse, St James’s Street,” dated 17th January 1750, refers to the productions of “Mr. Charles Gouyn, late proprietor and chief manager of the Chelsea House.” At this date the works were the property of Mr Nicholas Sprimont. Both Gouyn and Sprimont were of Flemish or French origin, and the latter had been a silversmith. (Professor Church thinks they were Flemish.)

The site of the works has never been clearly defined; but Faulkener, in his “History of Chelsea,” places it at the corner of Justice Walk and the upper end of Laurence Street. Some part of the works, however, must have been situated in Cheyne Row, as, in 1843, during excavations there, large quantities of broken vases and figures were found.

In 1769 Sprimont’s connection with the Chelsea works came to an end, and early in the following year they were purchased by William Duesburyof Derby. For some time the two businesses were carried on simultaneously, but in 1784 the Chelsea works were finally closed and the plant transferred to Derby. Sprimont died in 1771.

Professor Church considers that “the productions of the Chelsea factory may be grouped in two divisions: that which extended from the commencement of the works till the year 1757, during which period the porcelain was characterised by considerable translucency, much glassy frit being employed in the paste, the glaze being also very soft, and gold sparingly used in decoration. In the second period, from 1759 to 1769, the body contained bone ash, and the use of gold in the decoration became more frequent and lavish.”

One of the chief characteristics of early Chelsea is its very unctuous appearance and the thickness and heaviness of many of the pieces. If held to the light all early Chelsea china will show what I have heard described as II grease spots “-small discs, more translucent than the rest of the body, which look like floating grease spots, but which are evidently caused by small irregular accumulations of the glassy frit which was so largely used in the early body. This peculiarity was first pointed out by Dr W. H. Diamond. Mr Burton considers it to have been a device of the Chelsea workmen to strengthen the body and keep it in shape. Another characteristic is the extremely soft and glassy appearance of the glaze, which is very thickly applied, but is so clear that it looks almost as if the body had been encased in a thin covering of glass; it is often much cracked, and sometimes forms quite large lumps, which are generally cleverly hidden by a flower, leaf, insect, or other device painted on the spot. I know a plate which has a lump of glaze more than three-quarters of an inch in diameter; this is painted to represent an apple, the flaw being quite hidden by this skilful device. Three little wart-like blisters in the glaze, made by the tripod on which it was baked, are often found on the bottom ofa piece of Chelsea china, and figures are generally marked by three “thumb marks,” or dirty looking patches also made by the tripod. These “thumb marks” and blisters are often a help to identification, as, like the productions of many other early factories, much Chelsea china was unmarked.

Early catalogues of auctions and advertisements-of which many are still in existence, and some may be seen at the British Museumgive one an idea of the quantity and great variety of the productions of the Chelsea factory, and It IS possible to discover the approximate date of some specimens by means of these. Thus we learn that at the earliest sale in 1754 the china sold was “enameled on white.” In 1756, during March and April, a sale which lasted for” sixteen days” took place, in which “mazarine blue” china was sold. “In 1 7 59 pea-green color was introduced; in 1760 claret color and turquoise.”

The earliest period may sometimes be recognized by the dress and colors used on figures, and a curious example of a small detail, quoted by Professor Church, by which the period of manufacture can be identified, is supplied by two figures of Falstaff, both made in the same mould. “Falstaff’s inn-reckoning is given on the tablet beside him on one, doubtless the earlier of the two, as:

On the second, made during the Chelsea Derby period, when possibly , sack’ had become obsolete as a beverage-the reckoning is given as (Church):

The first period is distinguished by a simple form of decoration and very little gilding, which showed off the exquisite appearance of the beautiful soft body to perfection. Services were decorated with Chinese designs in colors, so beautifully painted and such faithful copies of the original that one who did not understand paste and glaze would find it difficult to believe they were made in England. This alone proves that from the beginning first class artists were engaged. Flowers and fruit in detached groups, with butterflies, insects, and caterpillars, were painted, and this latter style of decoration was also applied to Oriental china at Chelsea which had been imported in its white state from China. I have a small thin Oriental basin painted in this way, and the man who sold it to me refused to believe it was not English.

In one of the earliest sale catalogues-that of 17 56-we find more than forty varieties of figures and statuettes mentioned, some representing Europe, Asia, Africa, and America the Madonna and Child; Perseus and Andromeda; monkeys playing on musical instruments; and many others. “All these early figures were either without gilding or only very sparingly gilt; later on, in 1759, the more richly gilt and gorgeously colored figures were produced” (Church). In that year the catalogue mentions figures representing the four quarters of the globe; George IlL, in Vandyke dress, leaning on an altar; Una and the lion, twenty-seven inches high; and Britannia the same height. A set of dwarfs, another of dancing figures, and the Vauxhall singers are well known.

Some of the figures, noticeably shepherds and shepherdesses with sheep and dogs, had backgrounds formed of boskies of May-flowers and greenery, the base being often very elaborate in style; vases magnificent in color and decoration; leaf-shaped dessert services; vessels and dishes in the shape of fruit, flowers, and vegetables; crawfish salt-cellars, and boars’ head dishes were also made at Chelsea; but some of its chief productions were the beautiful scent-bottles and snuff-boxes in every variety of form and size, from the tiny, delicate Pompadour lady to the Chinese figure or Turk’s head. These scent-bottles had often French in scriptions, “sometimes incorrectly spelt, and were at one time mistaken for Sevres” (Church).

An anchor in relief in a raised embossed oval is the earliest regular Chelsea mark, but on a few pieces the word” Chelsea,” with an incised triangle, has been found; sometimes the raised anchor is relieved in color with a brown-red enamel on white, but this is a very rare mark.

The anchor in red, purple, or gold is the usual Chelsea mark; sometimes it is very roughly painted. Though it varies in size it must not be confounded with the anchor found on Venetian porcelain, which is much larger. I t is not al ways found on the bottom of a piece, but, as in the case of some figures, it may be anywhere on the base, or even upon the drapery -sometimes in a fold, in which case it is generally very small.

A china factory was established in Bristol by Richard Champion, who in 1173 purchased the patent rights of his cousin, William Cookworthy of Plymouth, but it is evident that prior to this attempts had been made by Champion to make porcelain which had met with only partial success. In 1765 Mr Caleb Lloyd of South Carolina sent a box of Kaolin or China clay to Lord Hyndford, who was a relative of Champion, and with this clay experiments were made which, however, proved unsuccessful.

There has been some controversy as to the exact date when Richard Champion really began to make china in Bristol, and it is supposed that Cookworthy at first tried to establish a factory there, as, on z and March 1 no, an advertisement appeared in the Worcester Journal: “China ware painters wanted for the Plymouth New - Invented Manufactory: A number of sober ingenious artists, capable of painting on enamel or blue, may hear of constant employment by sending their proposals to Thomas F rank in Castle Street, Bristol.”

From this we may take it that china was already being made, or was about to be made, in Bristol early in 1770.

Champion had invested a large sum of money in the patent, and with a view to recouping himself he petitioned Parliament for the extension of the monopoly. In this he was materially assisted by Edmund Burke, and after a long and fierce struggle, in which Wedgwood was his most bitter and powerful opponent, he gained the day, but the expense and loss of time involved had so crippled his resources that the works were closed and the patent rights sold to a company of Staffordshire potters in 1781.

The Bristol paste is milk white in color and very vitreous; it is composed of silica, lime, alumina, and alkalies, but, owing to the large proportion of silica and the small quantity of alkalies used in its composition, it is extraordinarily hard. The glaze on fine pieces is very faint and thin; on commoner productions it has a bluish tint, and is very hard.

The chief characteristics are the spiral ridges, best seen in a reflected light, which are to be met with more or less in all the china made at Bristol, and which look as though in turning the piece on the wheel irregularities of the lathe were left. Small black spots in the glaze are also generally seen, especially on the bottom of plates, bowls, and cups.

The dishes and larger pieces belonging to services were usuaily supported underneath not only by the ring on which to stand but also inside this by an extra support made in the paste-like a large raised pot hook reaching from side to side of the ring. I have never seen this device used by other factories.

Early pieces were decorated in under-glaze blue in Chinese taste, but the best - known design used at Bristol was that of looped-up wreaths of laurel-green leaves. Many services were decorated with detached bouquets of flowers enamelled in natural colors, small sprays and single leaves and flowers powdered over the pieces, borders being beautifully painted in scale and gilt.

A specialty of the Bristol factory was the biscuit plaques, remarkable for their finish and design. These plaques took several forms and shapes. In the British Museum may be seen two oval ones containing busts of Benjamin Franklin and George Washington. The former is enclosed in a wreath of a dull gold surrounded by raised festoons of flowers, whilst the latter has, in addition to the flowers, a display of weapons.

In Mr. Trapnell’s collection are two busts, one of a lady, whose point-lace cap and dress frill are most exquisitely finished; the other, a gentlemen, dressed in the costume of 1775. Unfortunately, these are not in the cabinet which, through Mr Trapnell’s kindness, I am able to illustrate, but at the back of the second shelf (from the top) will be seen two round plaques, with roses and other flowers in high relief. Another form of plaque contains armorial bearings. The arms are displayed in the centre, surrounded by wreaths of flowers, sometimes twisted and tied with ribbon.

Nothing can exceed the delicacy and beauty of the raised flowers on these Bristol plaques, and when associated with gold, as they frequently are, the effect is singularly pleasing.

Groups and statuettes were also made in biscuit, and these will be found to have the base ornamented with leaves and ferns in high relief, the Bristol cross being incised in the paste at the bottom.

The cabinet illustrated (Plate XIV.) contains some most beautiful and interesting specimens of Bristol china, besides many pieces more commonly met with. On the top shelf will be seen two small white Chinese figures; these are marked with the word “Bristoll” in relief letters. Mr. Trapnell has a sauce-boat decorated in under-glaze blue with embossed festoons of white flowers which has also this mark.

On the second shelf is a set of four figures representing the elements: “Fire,” Vulcan forging a thunderbolt; “Water,” a nymph with fishes in a net at her feet; “Earth,” a husbandman leaning on a spade, a basket of fruit at his feet; “Air,” a winged figure resting on a cloud.

The third shelf contains part of the beautiful tea service made by Champion for Edmund Burke, who gave it as a souvenir to Mrs. Smith. When Edmund Burke became a candidate for the representation of Bristol in 1774 he accepted the hospitality of Mr. Joseph Smith, and was so pleased with his sojourn under that gentleman’s roof that he commissioned Champion to make the most beautiful tea service possible, for Mrs. Smith. This service is decorated with wreaths of laurel green and matted gilding; each piece bears the arms and crest of the Smith family, and the initials of Mrs. Smith (SS) are painted in bright blossoms. When a piece of this celebrated service comes into the market it fetches a large price. As much as £93 has been given for a cup and saucer.

An even more beautiful service was made and given by Champion and his wife to Edmund Burke. It is ornamented with the arms of Burke impaling Nugent, emblematical figures and devices bearing inscriptions, dated 3rd November 1774. Each piece has an elaborate gold border and pattern on a canary ground, the covered pieces being also adorned with wreaths of raised flowers. Mr. Trapnell has some of the finest specimens of this service, but they are not in the cabinet illustrated.

On the shelf with the Smith service will be seen the celebrated Bristol figures representing the four quarters of the globe. “Europe,” holding a book in one hand and a palette in the other, at her feet trophies of war and a horse reclining; “Asia,” with a vase of spices and a camel at her feet; “America” holds in her left hand a bow, and with the right draws an arrow from her quiver, at her feet a prairie cat; “Africa,” represented by a young negress with a lion, a crocodile, and an elephant’s head. This set of figures was also made at Plymouth. The fifth shelf illustrates the well-known Bristol china with festoons and wreaths of laurel-green leaves. On this shelf will be seen several renderings of the design and various shapes used for tea services.

On the bottom shelf are three fine mugs with painted landscapes and birds, and also some cups and a saucer with the pineapple pattern in relief.

Some of the fine Bristol figures-noticeably the four quarters of the globe-have the mark To impressed in the paste. This is supposed to be the monogram of Tebo, the celebrated modeler employed by Champion.

The edges of Bristol cups, saucers, jugs, and bowls, as well as the spouts and covers of teapots, are often painted brown, or a pink shade of brown, in place of gold.

The manufacture of porcelain is said to have commenced at Stratford-le-Bow, in Essex, as early as 1730, but the earliest authentic information concerning the factory is dated 1744, when a patent was granted to Edward Heylyn and Thomas Fry. The wording of this specification is given by Mr Jewitt, and is as follows :

“A new method of manufacturing a certain material whereby a ware might be made of the same nature and kind, and equal to-if not exceeding in goodness and beauty-china and porcelain ware imported from abroad.”

Fry, who was an artist and engraver of considerable skill, became manager of the works for Messrs Weatherby & Crowther, and devoted himself assiduously to the improvement of the manufacture. He died in 1762, and subsequently, on the death of one of the partners and the bankruptcy of the other, the works were sold in 1775 to William Duesbury, who removed the models and moulds to Derby.

The Bow factory stood on a site now occupied by Messrs Bell & Black’s match manufactory, and during some excavations in 1868 most valuable information was derived when, at a depth of eight or ten feet below the surface, some workmen discovered a quantity of fragments of Bow porcelain, both in the biscuit and in the glazed state. This discovery has led to the identification of many pieces which had previously been wrongly attributed to other factories.

In the British Museum is a punch bowl, contained in a box, on the cover of which is written the following interesting information the writing is signed “T. Craft, 1790,” and runs thus:

“This bowl was made at the Bow China Manufactory about the year 1760, and painted there by Mr Thomas Craft. My cipher is in the bottom; it is painted in what we used to call the old Japan taste, a taste at that time much esteemed by the then Duke of Argyll; there is nearly two pennyweight of gold - about fifteen shillings. I had it in hand at different times about three months; about two weeks’ time was bestowed upon it. It could not have been manufactured, etc. for less than £4. There is not its similitude. I took it in a box to Kentish Town, and had it burnt there in Mr Gyles’s Kiln; cost me three shillings… The above manufactory was carried on many years under the firm of Messrs Crowther and Weatherby, whose names were known almost over the world. They employed 300 persons; about 90 painters (of whom I was one), and about 200 turners, throwers, etc. were employed under one roof. The model of the buildings was taken from that at Canton in China.”

The statement in the last paragraph no doubt explains why Bow china was sometimes inscribed as “made at New Canton,” and also why the works were known as “New Canton.” We have little information as to the materials used at this factory. According to the patent taken out by Heylyn and Fry in 1744, one part of potash or pearl ash is mixed with “one part of sand or flint and a variable proportion of ‘unaker.’” This latter, however, is not mentioned by Fry in another patent, taken out in 1749, in which “virgin earth” (supposed to be bone ash), mixed with flint or sand and a proportion of pipeclay, is used, the glaze being described as made of “saltpetre, red lead, and sand, with the addition of white lead and smalts.”

The paste of Bow is soft and similar to that of Chelsea, but is generally coarser and more vitreous in appearance. The glaze is creamy white and thickly applied, so that on pieces decorated with raised designs it fills up small spaces in the design. Small specimens will be found to be comparatively heavy for their size; the paste, where thin, is very translucent, but at the bottom of cups, bowls, and teapots, where it is thickest, it is not nearly so translucent as Chelsea china, and when looked through in a good light it appears “yellowish -not greenish, like Worcester” (Church).

The raised May-flower or hawthorn pattern was a very favorite design copied from the Oriental; also acorns and oak-leaves, and two roses with leaves on a stalk, all in white, in high relief on a white ground, are very characteristic of Bow; but the style has been copied by Coalbrook Dale and other factories. I have noticed, however, that the extreme edges of these white flowers and leaves in genuine specimens are often slightly discolored, and look as though the glaze had been worn off by baking.

A very favorite design was the” partridge” pattern, of which an illustration (Plate XI 1.) is given. This pattern was also copied by Chelsea, Bristol, and Worcester. Under-glaze blue, in a peculiar pale shade of cobalt, was used in Chinese designs in which there are generally birds and a “weeping willow.” Transfer-printing in black and colors - both under and over glaze-was employed; shell sweetmeat stands and salt-cellars were made, also handles for knives and forks.

The figures and statuettes are very fine, and closely resemble those made at Chelsea, but the colors used in the dresses and drapery of Bow figures are brighter, an.d a square hole at the back in, or near, the base-made to hold a metal stem to support the nozzles for candles -is only met with in Bow figures. Fine vases were made, beautifully painted with flowers, birds’, and landscapes, and ornamented with masks and flowers in relief; and a set decorated in the peculiar Bow shade of blue, and marked with a monogram T. F. is undoubtedly the work of Thomas Fry, who is known to have signed some of his engravings with this monogram.

The marks were generally roughly painted in red, or incised in the paste. 1730- 1775.

It is believed that a suburb of Leeds called Potternewton derived its name from ancient pot works, but nothing definite is known about them, the earliest authenticated manufacture being that of tobacco pipes, which was begun about the year 1714.

Two brothers named Green established a pottery manufactory at Leeds in 176o. It is supposed that at first they only produced black ware, but shortly afterwards cream-colored ware was introduced, clay being brought from Devon, Cornwall, and Poole, and local clay was employed. The firm styled “Humble, Greens & Co.” was shortly afterwards joined by Mr William Hartley, when it became “Hartley, Greens & Co.” This firm carried on an extensive trade with Russia, and, as the Leeds pottery was found to withstand the severity of the climate, they had almost a monopoly of the Russian trade until they were superseded by Wedgwood, who manufactured a lighter ware” (Rudler).

Messrs Hartley, Greens & Co. published illustrated pattern-books, which are a great help in the identification of their wares. One of these, printed in English, French, and German, bears the following title: “Designs of Sundry Articles of Queen’s or Cream-colored Earthen-Ware, manufactured by Hartley, Greens, and Co., at Leeds Pottery; With a great Variety of other Articles. The same Enameled, Printed, or Ornamented with Gold to any Pattern; also with Coats of Arms, Cyphers, Landscapes, &c., &c. Leeds, 1786.”

After the death of Mr Hartley the business passed into the hands of Mr Samuel Wainwright, 1825; then to Messrs S. & J. Chappell, 1832; and afterwards, in 1850, to Messrs Warburton & Britton.

Leeds cream ware bears a striking resemblance to Staffordshire cream ware. It has a brilliant glaze of a greenish tint, with which it is thickly coated. Basket work and perforated and pressed work were beautifully executed. The handles of teapots and cream jugs were twisted, and ended in floral designs, slightly raised; figures in white, with a bluish glaze; in cream ware; and also painted like Staffordshire figures, were made, and dessert services in basket work, with fine centre-pieces were a feature of the Leeds manufactory.

Marble decoration and agate ware were used on barrel-shaped teapots, decorated with bands of orange and brown. Transfer-printing in black on cream ware, both over and under glaze, was employed, and flowers and insects were enameled in colors. Gold was not much used in decoration.

Leeds ware is rarely marked, and when it does occur the name of the firm or of the pottery is stamped in full.

The pieces illustrated are a basket or wickerwork plate, a dessert dish and stand with pierced work and raised and embossed moulding, a teapot with twisted handles and blue decoration in Chinese taste, and a figure in cream ware painted in colors.

The original English rendering of the “willow” pattern was designed and engraved by Thomas Minton for Thomas Turner of Caughley in 1780; and specimens are generally marked with a crescent in blue under glaze filled in, the letter C. in various forms, and the letter S. sometimes associated with a small cross or cross swords. All these are in under-glaze blue, and are very roughly drawn. There are three names associated with this factory namely, “Turner,” who was the maker; “Caughley,” because the original owner of the works lived at Caughley Hall; and “Salopian,” because the town was in the county of Salop.

Both earthenware and porcelain were made by Turner, which the porcelain, have a different rendering of the pattern from that which was first engraved by Minton, and it is well to bear, in mind that the earliest pattern was the one which illustrated the poem and story. For this reason the Caughley - Turner pattern is generally caned “the story” pattern, to distinguish it from other renderings of the “willow” pattern. Thomas Minton was the great-grandfather of the present Thomas Minton, and founder of the Minton factory, where the” willow” pattern has always been, and is still being, made. Copper plates were engraved by Minton and sold to many factories, but there were slight differences in all of them, and this is one of the reasons why a study of this kind of ware is so interesting; the patterns of fences differ, there are more apples in some than in others, and whereas in the original design there were five kinds of trees, on others there are often only three or four.

In addition to the “story” or first pattern there are other ” willow” pattern designs, all Oriental and all equally interesting; some have one man, some two men on the bridge, and all of them have a willow in a prominent position. These patterns, copied from porcelain which was so largely imported from China at that time, were engraved between 1780 and 1790 by Minton and his assistants. One of the first of the designs was the “pagoda,” or second period pattern, made for Josiah Spode, In this design the temple or pagoda is to the left, and on the bridge which connects the gardens with a bank on the right are two men; on the bank to the right may be seen a peach-tree and an apple-tree. Behind the temple is a wall, with trees behind it and between it and the temple. The fence is shorter than the one in the first design, and has what is known as the Swastika fret. A conventional border used with this design is the “butterfly” border. I t seems to have been arranged by first drawing a butterfly as Nature made it, and then, “by the use of petals and fish-roe motifs,” conventionalized. Between the butterflies, and separating them, is the “sceptre,” or “joo-e,” made up of curved lines, which are filled in with trellis pattern. The “lattice” pattern, on the rise of the plate, is also somewhat different from the Caughley design.

A butterfly design which differs slightly from the last is the “curl and butterfly” border, and still another, also engraved by Minton for Spade, is the “dagger” border; this is exactly like a Nankin plate in my possession with little daggers forming a second row round-the rim.

The third “willow” pattern period dates from 1800 - 1830, during which time most English factories, and several Continental ones, made use of it in various forms, and during this time it was not unusual to find specimens marked with the Staffordshire knot, this device being also used on the top of covers in place of, or round, the knob.

Following the prevailing fashion, Wedgwood used the “willow” pattern. Pieces marked “Wedgwood,” and bearing this decoration, are to be met with. The pattern is a faithful copy of the Caughley pattern, except in two particulars-namely, the fret of the fence and the number of apples on the tree, Wedgwood’s plate having thirty-four and the dishes more.

Davenport plates have twenty-five apples, and there is a difference in the “fret” pattern in the rise of the plate.

The Adams plate has thirty-two apples, and on the dishes will be found fifty apples. The edges of plates and dishes are sometimes plain and sometimes indented; the fence is like the Caughley one, but the pattern in the “rise” is squarer than the former. Spade copied the “story” or “Caughley” pattern, in addition to the other designs engraved for him, and on his plate will be found thirty-two apples, the five trees - namely, the willow, peach, plum, fir-and the tree with dark circles; the fence, however, is more intricate. Clews, who also used the pattern, followed the Caughley lines, but there are thirty-four apples on his tree.

There are other renderings of the “willow” pattern, all of them more or less alike, but with slight differences in detail, a study of which will materially add to the collector’s interest in his collection. The Swansea “willow pattern” was transfer - printed in dark and light blue, also in black and brown.

In addition to the larger pieces generally met with, such as dishes, plates, and tea sets, many small and dainty specimens were made, such as leaf dishes with the pattern on the inside, the edges dentated, and the outside veined like a leaf. Soup and sauce ladles, and also pretty little pickle dishes, are still to be picked up at a moderate price.

The admirers and collectors of earthenware and porcelain decorated with the “willow” pattern are so numerous that its subject is so picturesque both in history and design.

Who has not heard the fascinating little poem:

“Two pigeons flying high,
Chinese vessel sailing by,
Weeping willow hanging o’er
Bridge with three men-if not four,
Chinese temple, there it stands,
Seems to cover all the land,
Apple tree with apples on,
A pretty fence to end my song.”

The poem and story of the willow pattern were taught me in childhood by my grandmother, who was born in Staffordshire in 1800 and was a great authority on matters connected with the potteries in her youth. For the information regarding the engraving of the pattern and its many varieties I am indebted to Staffordshire friends, and chiefly to an article by Mary Churchill Ripley in the American magazine Old China. Messrs Minton have supplied a replica of the plate which they believe to be the original Caughley design.

There are, I believe, several versions of the rhyme, but this is the form in which it was taught me by my grandmother, and never shall I forget the pride with which I recited it to a group of admiring brothers and sisters and pointed out to them the story on the plate she gave me.

Nor is the little poem the only story connected with the “willow” pattern; tradition ascribes the scenes depicted to incidents in the love story of a beautiful Chinese maiden.

Koong-Shee was the daughter of a wealthy mandarin, and loved Chang, her father’s secretary. The mandarin, who wished his daughter to marry a wealthy suitor, forbade the marriage, and shut his daughter up in an apartment on the terrace of the house which is seen in the pattern to the left of the temple. From her prison Koong-Shee “watched the willow-tree blossom,” and wrote poems in which she expressed her ardent longings to be free ere the peach bloomed. Chang managed to communicate with her by means of a writing enclosed in a small cocoanut shell which was attached to a tiny sail, and Koong-Shee replied in these words, scratched on an ivory tablet:

“Do not wise husbandmen gather the fruits they fear will be stolen?” and sent them in a boat to her lover.

Chang, by means of a disguise, entered the mandarin’s garden, and succeeded in carrying off Koong-Shee. The three figures on the bridge represent Koong-Shee with a distaff, Chang carrying a box of jewels, and the mandarin following with a whip.

The lovers escaped, and “lived happily ever after” in Chang’s house on a distant island until, after many years, the outraged wealthy suitor found them out and burnt their home, when, from the ashes of the bamboo grove, their twin spirits rose, Phoenix-like, in the form of two doves.

Silver and gold luster were also manufactured at Etruria; of the former, three pieces are illustrated on Plate VIII. They are of beautiful quality, and, as will be seen in the picture, the texture is so fine and bright that they reflect like looking-glass, and are in this respect far superior to a great deal of the silver luster to be met with in these days.

In 1775, Wedgwood produced what is unquestionably his highest ceramic achievment -namely, his celebrated jasper ware. “The peculiarities of this beautiful substance were the result of the use of minerals containing barium-chiefly sulphate-as constituents of the paste. By mixing with various oxides, the jasper received a variety of tints, blue, sage green, and lilac being the most characteristic, though pink, yellow, and black were also used. The beautiful effect produced by applying ornaments of white jasper to colored grounds is well known, but Wedgwood made many other combinations of colors, and was untiring in his efforts to bring this ware to perfection. Sometimes the color permeated the body, whilst in others it was due to a wash of colored jasper dip.” * At first the bas-reliefs were formed, both ground and ornaments, in one mould, but as this was not always ’successful, being apt to show fire cracks, and lacking distinctness of outline, it was abandoned for separate modeling and firing, the ground and raised design being afterwards cemented together. Vases, plaques-many of them of large dimensions delicate cameos for seals, brooches, and other jewelry, beads for necklaces, snuff-boxes. plates, tea and coffee sets, cups and saucers, chess-men, and many other articles were made.

The bas-reliefs modeled by Flaxman, whose subjects were usually classical, appear on fine vases, tablets, and delicate cameos, the minutest details being most carefully studied. Indeed, for beauty of design, fine moulding, and exquisite modeling, the productions of the Etrurian works, during the latter years of Josiah Wedgwood’s life, are unrivalled.

In 1790, after three years’ labor, the copy of the celebrated Portland, or Barberini, vase was completed. This vase is ornamented in basreliefs in white jasper laid on a fine black ground polished like onyx. ” The original vase is of dark blue transparent glass with basreliefs laid on in white semi-opaque paste. It was discovered, between the years 1623 and 1644, in a marble sarcophagus buried beneath the mound called Monte de Grano, near Rome, which was opened by order of Pope Barberini (Urban VIII.). The sarcophagus was supposed to be that of the Emperor Severus and his mother Mamsea, who were slain in Germany A.D. 235.”

Sir William Hamilton brought the vase to this country in 1784, and it was purchased by the Dowager Duchess of Portland. At the sale of her museum in 1786 Wedgwood bid as high as £ IOOO for it, wishing to purchase it as a model for his jasper ware. The Duke of Portland, however, agreed that if Wedgwood would retire and let him buy it he would lend him the vase for the purpose required. It was accordingly sold to the duke for £ 1029.

The first fifty copies made by Wedgwood were subscribed for at £50 each. The original vase is now in the British Museum, where, in 1845, it was unfortunately broken by a fanatic, but it has since been admirably restored.

Of Wedgwood’s copies several are to be seen in our museums. They are distinguished, says Mr. Litchfield in his “Pottery and Porcelain,” “by their singular sharpness of outline, which was caused by their being recut by a lapidary after being fired.”

Wedgwood never made true porcelain, but some of his finer wares were very nearly allied to it, showing a closeness of texture and vitreous surface not met with in other pottery.

The works at Etruria are still carried on by the descendants of the great Josiah; the old moulds are still in use, and few new subjects have been added, so that it is often difficult for the uninitiated to distinguish between specimens made in Josiah Wedgwood’s time and the latter-day copies.

All pieces made during Wedgwood’s life are stamped with the name WEDGWOOD impressed in the clay, and the letters are clearly and sharply cut. Very occasionally a small workman’s mark or capital letter occurs beside the name, but few of these can be early pieces, as Wedgwood, who did not trouble to patent his own inventions, “suppressed,” according to Professor Church, “as far as possible any indication of their work which his artists might have wished to place upon their designs.”

The colored jasper of early days is distinguished from the modern by the sharpness of outline and careful modeling of reliefs, even in the minutest details of fingers and toes, and the delicate tint and smooth texture of the ground. After Wedgwood’s death the same mark was used, but the impression appears unfinished, and the more modern jasper ware is often fire cracked, the white ornamentation -which in the old days looked like carved ivory, has in the modern a dull chalky appearance.

During Bentley’s life his name was associated with that of Wedgwood in the mark. The amateur should beware of pieces which bear the mark Wedgewood-spelled with an e in the middle-and also of pieces marked Wedgwood & Co.

After the death of Josiah Wedgwood porcelain was manufactured at the E truria Works by his nephew Thomas Byerley, from 1805, for about eight or ten years. I t was, however, only produced in small quantities, and is now rarely met with. It was not always decorated in good taste, though some fine services richly gilt were made. In the Bethnal Green Museum are specimens with painted landscapes, flowers, and embossed designs in white in low relief.

The mark on this porcelain is almost invariably WEDGWOOD, transfer-printed in red, and (rarely) in blue. The mark in gold has also been found, and an impressed stamp of three human legs conjoined is sometimes found in addition to the transfer-printed mark.

Some Wedgwood Marks Josiah Wedgwood, 1759-1795. Wedgwood & Bentley, 1768-1780. Thomas Byerley Wedgwood porcelain, 1805-1814.

Josiah Wedgwood was born at Burslem in July 1730. He was the youngest son of Thomas and Mary Wedgwood, and was descended from a family of Staffordshire potters. His early education did not extend beyond the three R’s, but although he lived in days before secondary or higher education were thought of, he continued to educate himself throughout life.

After his father’s death, in 1739, Josiah was removed from school, and at the tender age of nine was apprenticed to his brother Thomas as a “thrower” at the Churchyard Works, Burslem. In 1744 he was apprenticed for five years to his brother as a potter, and at the end of this time he entered into partnership with John Harrison and Thomas Alders at the Cliff Bank Pottery. This partnership, however, soon came to an end, and he then joined Mr Thomas Whie1don of Fenton. It was there that he manufactured, amongst other things, the brightly-glazed green ware.

In 1759 Josiah Wedgwood returned to Burslem, where he commenced business on his own account in part of the Ivy Works, which belonged to his cousins, and later on he established himself at the Brick-House Works. About 1767 Wedgwood went into partnership with his friend Mr Thomas Bentley, a Liverpool merchant, who managed the warehouse in London for the sale of ornamental pottery. Mr. Bentley, who was a classical scholar and had a wide knowledge of art, did much to assist Wedgwood both by his learning and by procuring for the works the services of some of the best artists and modelers of the time. Amongst these Flaxman will always stand forth unrivalled for the beauty of his designs and the exquisite finish of his work.

“Josiah Wedgwood died, in 1795, at Etruria, the classic name given by him to the locality near Newcastle-under-Lyne, where he had built his large factory.” His beautiful work will ever stand as a memorial to him; and the dauntless spirit and untiring energy by which he overcame the difficulties which beset his life, bereft in its earliest days and unaided by educational advantages, will command the admiration and help to stimulate the ambitions of men in all ages.

The earliest piece of pottery bearing the name of Wedgwood is a puzzle jug in the Bethnal Green Museum. This jug “is of coarse brown ware, coated with green lead glaze, and bears an incised inscription, ‘John Wedg Wood, 1691.’ It is the work of John Wedgwood, great uncle of Josiah, who was born in 1654 and died in 1705. He was the grandson of Gilbert Wedgwood, the first of that name who had settled in Burslem at the beginning of the seventeenth century.

When quite young, and during his apprenticeship to his brother, Josiah Wedgwood improved the moulding and glazing in his factory, and also succeeded in making a variety of the agate ware in imitation of porphyry, and during his partnership with Thomas Whieldon, the tortoise-shell, agate, melon, and cauliflower ware were also much improved. He made, during this period, teapots with handles like crabs’ hooks, agate knife-hafts, and snuff-boxes, besides jugs, dishes, and plates.

When he returned to Burslem at the expiration of his partnership with Whie1don, Wedgwood added to his wares vases and fireplace tiles; the latter were decorated in relief work with coloured clay, and of the former specimens may be seen in white with grey cracks, which are a most excellent imitation of the Oriental” crackle” so much prized by collectors.

About this time Wedgwood began to improve the cream-coloured earthenware which was commonly used, and after many experiments was so successful that he sent a beautiful little breakfast set to Queen Charlotte. This gave so much satisfaction to the queen that she ordered a complete dinner service, appointed Wedgwood Queen’s Potter, and gave permission for the ware to be called queen’s ware. The fayence is of a light creamy texture of various shades, with a beautiful soft glaze, and is remarkable for the excellent ” potting” which characterized all Wedgwood’s work. Some cream, or queen’s ware, is decorated with painting and gilding, and other pieces are ornamented with transfer printing.

On Plate VIII. will also be seen a very interesting specimen of Wedgwood’s work. It is a pie-dish covered with” pie-crust ware,” made to a void the use of flour in times of scarcity. The firm continued to make these dishes after the death of Josiah. In” The Life of George Brummell” it is said that “The scarcity two years after Brummell’s retirement - viz. in July r Soo-s-was so great that the consumption of flour for pastry was prohibited in the Royal household, rice being used instead; the distiller left off malting; hackney-coach fares were raised 25 per cent; and Wedgwood made dishes to represent pie-crust.”

In 1768 Wedgwood produced his black ware, or “Basaltes of Egypt” as it was called. This ware was used for vases, generally classic in shape and decorated with classical subjects, for medallions, panels, plaques, and busts, some ornamented in relief with beautifully executed figures, horses, trees, flowers, leaves, and many other devices, the scenes depicted being often emblematic or mythological. The black Egyptian ware was also used for tea and coffee sets, and a small cream jug is shown on Plate IX. “Some of the black ware was decorated with paintings in encaustic, or unglazed enamel colours, in imitation of the ancient Greek painted vases,-the largest work executed by Wedgwood being a copy of the Greek vase in the British Museum. Its height is 2 feet 9 inches, and its greatest diameter 18 inches.”

In 1820 ware decorated with American views was extensively made in the Staffordshire potteries for the American market. This was at first decorated in a rich, deep shade of blue. The views included many American buildings and scenes, the landing of La Fayette, Arms of the United States, portraits of Washington, the Battle of Sebastopol, Biblical, and many other subjects, and were manufactured by Enoch Wood, Adams, Clews, Ridgway, Stubbs, Mayer, Rogers, Stevenson, and others.

Later on a series of English views, in deep blue, were used to decorate services for this country, and other colors were subsequently employed, those most frequently met with being pink and green, although medium blue, brown, and even mauve were used.

The borders found with this style of decoration vary; sometimes flower or fern borders were employed; other pieces have a foliage design; whilst shells, seaweed, and conventional patterns were also used.

On some pieces the name of the view will be found underneath, and the maker’s name or the name of the pattern used as a border.

This kind of ware is very interesting and decorative, and I recommend it to any reader who may not be able to start a collection in any of the better-known branches of the Art. Dishes, plates, soup and gravy tureens are the pieces most often met with, and a collection could be made of dark blue English views, medium blue views, figure pieces, and seascapes, or the collector might select only green or pink specimens.

Staffordshire jugs would also make a very interesting and somewhat instructive collection; historical, social, and domestic events were generally portrayed and often described on jugs and mugs. Plate VI I. shows a Mason’s ironstone jug, an old earthenware buff-colored jug, and in the centre a William IV. Coronation Jug, with a portrait of the king on one side and of Queen Adelaide on the other, whilst between them is the royal crown and an inscription, “Long live the King,” and the word “Reform.”

I t is believed that the use of salt as a glaze was introduced into Staffordshire by the Elers, as it is known to have been employed in Holland some years before their advent into this country.

The ware which derived its name from this process was made at first from common brick clay and sand, but subsequently a finer body was used; indeed, the paste of some specimens is almost as fine as porcelain. The glaze was simply common salt cast into the oven when at its greatest heat. Being volatilized it combined with the silica in the clay, which formed a thin glassy coating over the piece.

The color of salt-glazed ware is a drab shade of white. Many early pieces were decorated in relief by pressing the moist paste into metal moulds. Fine examples of this will be seen on Plate II I. where the principal part of the design takes the form of a scallop shell. The large teapot is a very fine specimen of slip decorated salt-glaze, and the white slip on the pale drab ground is very effective and dainty. The smaller teapot, with raised decoration, is ornamented with size gilding. The mug has flowers and birds enameled in colors, and the plate is decorated with a design in Liverpool transfer.

From these illustrations it will be seen that many and beautiful specimens were made in salt-glaze ware, and most of the Staffordshire potters in the eighteenth century made it; in fact, there are few wares which are distinctive of any particular factory. Wedgwood’s basaltes and jasper wares were copied by almost every potter of his day, and of the latter, three examples are given on Plate IV. These three teapots are similar in color namely, pale blue jasper with design in white. No. I is by Neale & Co.; No.2 by Turner; and No. 3 by Adams.

Towards the end of the eighteenth, and early in the nineteenth, century much interesting pottery and porcelain was manufactured in Staffordshire, and many are the names and marks to be met with on the productions of that period. Figures in great variety were made, and many of them were well modeled and tastefully painted; some, with boskies of green leaves and May flowers, in imitation of Chelsea, are very desirable, especially those which bear the name “Walton” on a scroll at the base. “Toby” jugs, teapots with comic inscriptions, toad mugs, lambs, cows, houses, and many other devices were used. Unfortunately, most of these are copied in these days, and are planted in farmhouses and cottages to entrap the unwary. They will generally be found to have some neatly-executed flaw, and always appear aggressively dirty with a clean kind of dirt which might have been painted on with a brush.

In 1804 Miles Mason began to make his “Ironstone China” which is so well known and so much admired. As all his ware was stamped with his name, there is no difficulty in identifying it.