i^ China /■#'' •^:^ -.tK ^J® rj4;! ■■^''y'^<\ THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES KEYWORTH r E HOUSTON L •^\* ^*-A^^A^^'^yV»V»-WV^^^^V»'^»^\ The ABC of Collecting Old English China Giving a Short History of the English Factories, and showing how to apply Tests for Unmarked China before 1800. /-" By J. F. BLACKER. XonOon : Published by THE LONDON OPINION CURIO CLUB, 107, Regent Street, "W. Printed by Henry Good & Son, E.G. 1908. Copyright. Entered at Stationers' Hall. INDEX OF FACTORIES, WITH FOUNDERS^ NAMES. Bow Bristol Caughley CoAivPOR'r or \ CoLEBROOK Dale ( Chelsea Derby Liverpool ... LoNGTON Hall Lowestoft Nantgarw ... NewhalL . • . PiNXTON Plymouth ... Staffordshire - BURSLEM ... Etruria ... Hanle Y . . . LONGPORT LONGTON ... Stoke-on-Trent »> »J »> >> tunstall Swansea SWINTON Worcester (Frye) (Champion) (Turner) (Rose) (Sprimont) (Duesbnry) (Chaffers) (Littler) (Luson) (Dilhvyn) (Bagnall, &c.) (Coke) (Cookworthy) (Rogers) (Wedgwood) (Mason) (Davenport) (Hilditch) (Minton) (Spode) (Copeland) (Bridgwood & Clarke) .. (Dillwyn) (Rockingham — Brameld) (Dr. Wall) PAGE 67 118 20, 21 22 50 80 31 15 26, 27 24, 25 iS 35 106 36 20 36 13 37 14 19 19, 20 37 24 30 38 INDEX OF PERSONS, WITH FACTORIES FOR WHICH THEY WORKED. Askew . (Derby) Barr . (Worcester) . BiLWNGSLEY . (Derby) >» . (Pinxton) . >> . (Nantgarw) . ,, . (Swansea) . Bloor . (Derby) Bone . (Bristol) Boreman . (Derby) BOTT . (Worcester) PAGE 102 43 88, 102 35 25 25 97 123 102 46 I ' 4 H --■ ~ a- INDEX OF PERSONS, WITH FACTORIES FOR THEY "^ORKED-continued. WHICH Eowcockb; . (Bow) Brameld (Rockingham) BRIDGWOOD & Cl.ARKE.. . (Tunstall) ... Brittan (Bristol) Browne . (Lowestoft) ... Chaffers . (Liverpool) ... Chamberlain (Worcester) ... Champion (Bristol) Coffee (Derby) Coke (Pinxton) Cookworthy (Plymonth) ... Copei^and (Stoke -ou-Trent Craft (Bow) Crowther (Bow) Davenport (Longport) ... DlI,I,WYN (Nantgarw) ... ff ... (Swansea) ... DUESBURV, 1ST William (Longton Hall) 2ND „ .. (Derby) 3RD ., ... (Derby) Flight (Worcester)... Fryb (Bow) Grainger. (Worcester) ... Hancock (Derby) Hancock, Robt (Worcester) ... Heylyn (Bow) HiLDITCH (Longton) ... Holdship (Worcester) ... Keen (Derby) Kerr (Worcester) ... Littler (Longton Hall) Locker (Derby) Luson (Lowestoft) ... Mason (Hanley) MiNTON (Stoke-on-Treut) Pennington (Liverpool) ... Rogers (Burslem) ... Rose (Coalport) ... Spengler (Derby) Spode (Stoke-on-Trent) Sprimont (Chelsea) Tebo (Bristol) Turner (Canghley) ... Wall, Dr (Worcester) ... Weather BY (Bow) Wedgwood, Josiah (Etruria) ... 15. (Derby) 99, I 'AGE ••74, 76 30 .. 37 122, T2.S 28 32 .. 44 .. 121 92, XO5 35 106 ..19, 20 67 .67, 72 T3 .. 25 24 So 87 88 43 67 •■45 46 103, 104 43 .. 67 .. 37 ••43. 87 -87, 95 45 15 • 90 .. 27 36 .. 14 .. 33 36 . 20, 21 ..89, 92 • • 19 .. 51 140 .. 21 38 ••67, 72 , , 20 57S536 ENGLISH LOCAL INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS. Bow.— Soft Paste, 4. Patterns, 68, 69. Inkpot, 70. Knife Handles, 73. I Kitty Clive as "Mrs. Root," 75. I Marks, 77. BRiSTor^.— Hard Paste, 6. A Vase, marked Plymouth, probably Bristol, 116. Old. — A Plate and a Plateau, 119. The P'our Seasons, 121. A beautiful Group, 122. "Benjamin Franklin," Hard Porcelain Flower Piece, 125. A beautiful Teaspoon, 127. A Goblet from the Edkin Collection, 128. Early Marks, 129. Fine Porcelain, 130, 131, 133. Figure, "Asia," 136. , Oval Plateau, 137. 1 Marks, 139. A Compotier, 141. Caughley and Coalport. — Marks, 21. Cup and Saucer, Mark S, 22. Sucrier and Cover, 23. CheIvSEa.— Early Soft Paste, 2. White Porcelain, 10. The earliest Mark, 50. Early Scent Bottle, 53. Figures, 54, 61, 62. Early Marks, 56. J^ Anchor Marks, 58. The Paste, 59. A Group of Old, 63. A group of Birds, 65. , ChEI^SEA-Derby.— Cup and Saucer, 81. Double-handled Cup and Saucer, 82. Chinese. — White Porcelain, 9. < Coai^port. — Marks, 21. .1 Davenport.— Impressed Marks, 13. { INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS-co/jf/nwerf. Dbrby. — Biscuit Porcelain, 7, 8. Cup and Saucer, Si. Double-handled Cup and Saucer, 82. A fine Vase, 84. Biscuit Figures, 86, 89, 91. Large two-handled Vase, 88. Old Marks, 94. Bloor, Dresden, &c., Marks, 98. A Figure, " FalstafF," 100. LlvERPOOi.. — R. Chaffers, 32. Marks, 34. LONGTON HAivt,. — ^Vase and Mark, 16. Covered Dish, 17. Lowestoft.— Teapot, 29. MiNTON.— Marks, 14. Minor Factories. — Marks, 37. Mason.— Marks, 37. NSW Hali,. — Marks and Specimens, 18. NanTGarw. — Saucer, 27. PiNXTON. — Marks and Ice-Cooler, 35. Pi,YMOUTH. — Coffee Cup, 108. Shell Salt-Cellar, no. Oriental, Chinese — said to be Plymouth, 112. Marks, 113. A fine Mug, marked Plymouth, 115. Vase, probably Bristol, 116. Rockingham. — Marks, 30. Rogers. — Marks, 37. SpodE. — Marks, 19. Swansea. — Marks, 24. Mug, 27. White Porcei,ain. — Chinese, 9. Chelsea, 10. Worcester. — Early Soft Paste, transfer printed, 3. Old Marks, 42. Specimens in British Museum, 45. Later Marks, 47. > MANY books have been written on Old English China, and, in venturing to submit this addition to the number, we hope to reach collectors generally, and also those to whom the prohibitive price of the best books, with their lovely illustrations, has been an absolute barrier to possession. Our illustrations are many of them drawn with an ordinary pen from a specimen selected to illustrate a point. The writer has had the advantage of handling pieces in a great many collections, and also dealing with china actually for sale. The cover of the book is from a copper plate in the author's possession, engraved in 1614, and will form the cover of the series. Thanks are due, and are hereby tendered, to Mr. J. H. YoxAivL, M.A., M.P., for kindly reading the proofs. OLD CHINA. THE A B C OF COLLECTING. THE beginner is bound to make mistakes in china-buying as in everything else, but, with careful guidance, errors may be reduced to a minimum. This book aims to give that guidance and to lead the diligent student onward, step by Step, until a more or less expert judgment may be given by him on specimens submitted for his examination, China-Buying '^^^ ^Tst note is one of warning — never buy with your ears — in other words, learn to rely upon your eyes, upon your fingers, upon a knife, or upon a file. The respectable dealers will always give a written guarantee with any piece of costly china, and will refund the price if proved to be wrong. On the other hand, the tyro can scarcely expect to begin by making extraordinary bargains ; therefore, the best plan at starting is to limit your price until such a time as you feel sure of yourself. Now, Old China is divided into two classes, both translucent if held up to the light — hard paste is one class, soft paste is the other. Old China is Hard paste is sometimes called true porcelain, Two Cla s s because it is composed of natural elements, and soft paste is artificial porcelain, because it is a combination of various materials, forming a transparent cement, which was first heated or fritted and then mixed with other substances, such as white clay, to give opacity to the body. In both hard and soft paste every piece was covered with a glaze. As a rule, the glaze on a hard body was itself hard ; so, on the other hand, a soft glaze and a soft body were used together. There are a few variations from this rule, and these will be dealt with as they arise in connection with the various factories. Let us now examine a piece of hard paste china and learn to distinguish it from a piece of soft paste. It is absolutely necessary to master this difference, so B 2 OLD CHINA as to be able at once to say, "This is hard," "That is soft." At first, a file should be used on any piece of modern Chinese, German, or French china where it is free from glaze, and it The Difference. Early Chelsea— Soft Paste. Embossed Anchor MarK. will be found that the file does not cut the paste. If this test is applied similarly to a piece of Old English soft paste china, the file will make a distinct cut. Here at once you have the difference — one is as hard as the steel and the other is soft by comparison. Again, a penknife will scratch the one and not the other. Rub the pieces of china on your thumbnail, the hard paste will abrade the nail, the soft paste will not. Then practise with the tips of the fingers on various pieces that you have previously tested, feeling the unglazed paste until such time as you recognise the " hard " and the " soft " touch. Other pieces not previously tested should be subjected to examination in the same way. Another test by the sense of feeling is better applied by the lips, in the same way that lapidaries distinguish between a precious stone and a bit of paste. The hard porcelain is much nearer the composition of a stone than is the soft paste, which is more like glass or paste. Hence, to the lips the hard paste keeps cold, as does the stone, but the soft paste soon becomes as warm as the lips. This is an unusual test, but it is a very good one. Those pieces which have been tested by the file or the knife should be further examined in this way, which has the additional advantage that the paste makes but a very Hard Paste. small variation from the result. Hard paste is made of china stone and china clay, whilst soft paste contains much glass. The examination of the paste is rendered much more easy when the pieces under examination I HE A B C OF COLLECTING have been broken, because the fractured surfaces of the two kinds of china show differences which are easily detected. The hard paste shows a milk-white nearly smooth surface, slightly curved, with a glassy lustre and signs of granulation ; whilst the soft paste has many varieties, but all of them have an irregular fracture. Some soft paste appears like semi-opaque glass, other pieces present a dry, rather dull appearance, possibly due to the presence of bone-ash, which was used in varying proportions at Chelsea, Worcester, and other potteries probably as early as 1760. Yet, later, the soft paste of Derby has an opacity or earthiness which adversely affected the enamel colours used in the Bloor period. The previous file tests can be applied with good results to the paste first and then to the glaze. Now, the glaze on hard paste china is usually china stone, sometimes softened by the Soft Paste of Derby. Early Worcester— Soft Paste. Transfer Printed. Richard Holdship's MarK. addition of lime, and it will resist the file almost as well as the paste itself. This may be accounted for by the fact that the body and the glaze are fired in one operation in the kiln at a fierce heat, which causes a complete incorporation of the glaze with the body. In the artificial porcelain the glaze may be easily scratched with a knife, in fact, many early English cups show the marks made by the spoon when the B 2 4 OLD CHINA tea has been stirred. The glaze on this soft paste is simply a very fusible glass, which was applied after the body had been fired once and brought to what is known as the biscuit state. After the glaze itself had been fired, usually at a lower temperature than was necessary for the body, it was ready to receive its decoration in enamel colours, for it may be noted that only blue was commonly used under the glaze itself. We will now examine these enamel colours. From what we have learnt previously, we gather that true porcelain required a very fierce heat, about 1,350 degrees to 1,450 degrees Centigrade, and artificial porcelain Enamel would be fused into a shapeless mass at this temperature. So that enamel colours applied to hard paste china were melted and burnt in at the high tem- perature given above, and even then they were often not thoroughly absorbed, as in the soft paste. This can be both seen and felt. The enamel colours can be seen on the surface, and if Bow— Soft Paste. you pass your fingers around a hard Oriental piece with decoration in these colours you will feel them easily enough. The fact that such colours are sometimes removed by wear is due to the lower temperature at which they are applied. The Chinese burnt their enamels in at a very high temperature, and specimens which are hundreds of years old maintain their pristine beauty. On soft paste the enamel colours sink into and through the glaze, and have THE A B C OF COLLECTING 5 a tendency to run, leaving the edges more or less ragged. This is why the English factories adopted the plan of outlining the enamel pattern with a gold line or scroll. In early soft paste this gilding was a dead or matt gold, but when a new process was adopted the brown gold was burnished. In soft paste Sevres the gold used was almost always the beautiful matt gold. Some Early English china bears evidence of bad enamelling. The colours are worn off, not because the porcelain body is hard, as a matter of fact it is soft, but because the buming-in process has been ineffective, the glaze and the enamel have not been incorporated, the temperature in the kiln was not high enough. Hence, often the enamel colours flake off. The collector will find examples of old Chinese porcelain cups, saucers, vases, and dishes with the hardest possible paste, decorated in England at Chelsea, Bow, and Lowestoft, especially the last. The so-called Lowestoft hard paste is generally Chinese, which has been enamelled in England, and the insufficient heat applied in the English kilns did not melt the glaze on p the Chinese porcelain. It was only able to make the enamel colours adhere to the surface, and you will find them dry and rough above the glaze, with frequent marks showing where the colours once had been. In enamelling it is well to remember that it was often necessary to send the pieces to the kiln not once but several times. Hence there was a thorough combination between the enamels and the glaze in artificial porcelain which gave them a beauty and durability strikingly evidenced in the Sevres pdte tendre at the Wallace collection and in English specimens in the London museums. Another characteristic of soft paste china is to be seen in cups, saucers, basins, and vases — they are easily stained by use. Hard porcelain cannot be stained by any coloured or greasy liquids, but soft porcelain is much more porous, so that when once the glaze is pierced the process of discolouration begins. "When, then, you see a cup which has lost its pure white tone and become brown in tint you may conclude that it is soft paste. Finely- painted specimens with rich gilding are frequently found with this brown tint and with the scratches made by the spoon inside — a double evidence of soft paste and soft glaze. I said just now that discolouration took place when the glaze was pierced if the article was in use. There need not be any abrasion of the glaze, for many of the early specimens of soft paste are quite full of minute 6 OLD CHINA holes, which may be seen under a glass of high magnifying power, and, more than that, their constituent parts were very imperfectly united, the mass was not homogeneous, so that staining by use was quite common. Much may be learnt by examining old china by means of transmitted light. A piece of Old White Worcester held up to a strong light shows a faint greenish tint which Examining Old , ., ,. ,. ,, ^^^ . . China marks it distinctly as Worcester. Again, many pieces of Old Chelsea, which factory used a glassy frit, have internal evidence of the use of glass, for when held up to light they show bright spots in the paste. These spots are termed "moons," and they show, what has before been mentioned, the ingredients were imperfectly associated. This was first noticed by the late Dr. H. W. Diamond, and is thus described by him : " The soft waxen pieces of Chelsea porcelain, which belong to the first period, often exhibit, when we view a candle through them, a number of moon-like discs scattered about the pieces irregularly and more transluscent than the rest of the material." With regard to the decoration to be found on Early English China, it will be well to note that Chinese and Japanese patterns were copied, or, when not directly copied, supplied the motif ; the English artists also imitated Dresden and Sevres, including the marks. The marks on china form a trap for the unwary, and they are only valuable when the peculiarities of our old factories corroborate the marks. Models and marks may be accurate, but both may only indicate a French or German modern reproduction of an Old English piece. The beginner who has mastered the differences between hard and soft paste rises superior Bristol "Hard Paste. to these forgeries. He has only to remember that Plymouth, Bristol, and New Hall were the only old hard paste productions in England, and that Chelsea, Bow, Derby, Longton Hall, Worcester, THE A B C OF COLLECTING 7 Caughley, and Coalport made soft paste. Further, it must be noted that hard pavSte porcelain only continued to be made in England at New Hall until about the year 1810 or 1812, when the bone paste, which had been gradually making its way in all the potteries, finally superseded it, and at the same time displaced the various artificial bodies in the other works. From that time onwards the endless combinations of sands, marls, alkalies, lime, &c., which gave an individuality to the early factories, were swept away, and, with the exceptions of Swansea and Nantgarw, a standard body — mechanically perfect — has been adopted, which destroys the collector's interest in everything except decoration and marks. BISCUIT PORCELAIN. The simplest, yet the most beautiful, china, oftentimes the rarest and most valuable, is the plain, white, unglazed ware. The surface is a dull white, resembling marble. The real biscuit is that which was not intended either for decoration with a plain glaze, still less for decoration in colours. Such was the Old Chinese biscuit, carved like lace-work in porcelain, and so thin that it seemed as if the potter desired to ascertain the limits to which fretwork might The Rarest and Most Valuable. Biscuit Porcelain— Derby. be carried. Then, again, the Bristol biscuit, as evidenced in the scarce, lovely, but fragile Bristol bisque plaques, showed bouquets of raised flowers modelled in a delicate and masterly style. The 8 OLD CHINA flowers are those of the English gardens, and though both the Chinese pieces and the Bristol are hard paste^ the character of the decoration will be a sufficient guide. The rose is the chief flower used in English decoration, whilst the lotus would take its place when flowers were used as the decoration of Chinese biscuit. Amongst the other English factories, Derby biscuit takes a high place, because of the beauty of the modelling and the soft smooth- Biscuit Porcelain— Derby. Charles James Fox. ness of its surface. The figures and groups modelled by Spengler reach an eminence which has never been attained by any other English factory. They differ just as much from the ordinary so-called biscuit, which is only china left white and undecorated, as does the fine wax-like Wedgwood of the best period from the modem productions of Wedgwood ware. THE A B C OF COLLECTING 9 If you take a Spengler's group, and rub your fingers over its surface, the diflference between that and a piece of Rockingham biscuit will be so evident as to need no further Bisc it W demonstration ; one illustration of this kind will remain as a life-long lesson. Spengler's biscuit, like Wedgwood's old ware, is perfectly smooth and soft to the touch. All of the biscuit referred to is of a dead white, and it differs in this respect from another imitation of marble, very beautiful in its way, but, for some unexplained cause, never very popular — Parian. The statuary and busts so extensively made by the Messrs. Copeland in imitation of Parian, as opposed to Carrara, marble, was a development of the famous and Busts Derby Biscuit. It is necessary to draw the attention of the beginner to the differences between the Parian product and biscuit properly so-called, because some dealers try to get rid of Parian as if it were biscuit. White Porcelain— Cliinese. To take the chief point of difference, the colour, contrast will show that Parian is of a pale yellowish tint when compared with biscuit, which is white — quite white. Parian was introduced about 1846, at the suggestion, it is said, of Gibson, the sculptor, so that it does not enter into our classification of " Old China." Yet some of the fine Parian pieces, not Copeland's alone, but from other factories, too, are artistically fine, such as " The Infancy of Jupiter," " Lady Godiva," "The Flute-Player," "The Reading Girl," and busts, "A Mother" and "Love." Besides figures, groups, and busts, various other beautiful products are made in Parian. The first point to be emphasised here is that Parian is not biscuit, and the other point is that it is not old. As there is no glaze upon biscuit china, 10 OLD CHINA the file will give easy evidence as to whether the paste is hard or soft. This forms a large class of our earliest ware, and is often distinguished by disfiguring cracks, crazes, and blemishes, which naturally mark the experimental stage. For instance, two Taoist immortals, or gods, in white porcelain, might be submitted to you. The model is the same, yet one is Chinese and the other Plymouth. How can you detect this difference ? The colour glaze and the firing of the Chinese product are all perfect ; the glaze lies smoothly and evenly, and the paste is not cracked or flawed in the Plain White Porcelain, Glazed. White Porcelain -Chelsea. Bust of George II. kiln. The inside is very like the sugar icing on a cake, and has no glaze. The Plymouth figure, on the contrary, is not white ; it is all stained brown, owing to the use of wood in the kiln. From the same cause it has a number of tiny black spots all round it, especially on the projecting parts. Again, owing to imperfect combustion, it has numerous flaws or fire cracks. Both are hard THE A B C OF COLLECTING ii paste with hard glaze, which the file will not touch, but the Chinese production shows the hand of a master, whilst the Plymouth figure is evidently the work of a beginner. There are several qualities of white, of which the most valuable is a rich creamy tint, called blanc de Chine, which was copied with some success at St. Cloud, Dresden, Chelsea, and elsewhere. To take one example — a teapot. The Chinese form and colour were reproduced at all the factories named, and the Chelsea copy is marked by the anchor embossed. The early white glazed ware, especially the teaci;ps, saucers, and plates, are of very slight value, except for purposes of comparison. Generally there is no mark, and it is only by applying the tests which have been given that the collector can classify them. Certain well-known pieces are striking, such as the bust of George II., height 15j ins., after that modelled by Rysbrack, about 1745, Chelsea (see illustration), and Mr. Woodward as " A Fine Gentleman " in the play Lethe by David Garrick, about 1765, Chelsea, with another statuette of Mrs. Catherine (Kitty) Clive as "Mrs. Riot" in the same play, of the same period and factory. These specimens should receive the careful attention of beginners, for they embody the highest excellence in white, or rather blanc de Chine, that our English manufacturers have ever produced. The fault of most beginners is that they expect to go through a museum or to read a book or a few articles, and then to become experts. The museum is exceedingly helpful, A Word to but try and take a few pieces at a time, not a Beginners. few cases, and thoroughly study them. The best experience is handling genuine examples and noting all the characteristics. The period of ceramic history covered by variations in the paste and glaze ends with the eighteenth century, so that all the factories alike produced what may be termed "bone porcelain" quite early in the nineteenth century, and, consequently, if the later white china is examined, no differences can be seen either in the paste or glaze, and if there is no mark nor any distinctive style of colour or decora- tion, the general classification of " Old Staffordshire " is applied. Old Staffordshire china, unnamed, is seldom of the highest quality, but Longton Hall, New Hall, Davenport, Minton, Spode, and Wedgwood are names which are dear to collectors. Pro- fessor Church says : " I felt that a single specimen of early 12 OLD CHINA Minton porcelain would suffice to represent a whole group of factories, including those carried on by Davenport, Spode, and Wedgwood, so far as their productions in porcelain are concerned," The decoration under the glaze in blue on English china is either painted or printed ; on Oriental china it is always painted. Let us examine a saucer of Worcester blue- Blue-and-White , , •. , . . , . ., under the Glare and-white, and compare it with a similar Chinese one. Viewed by transmitted light, the Worcester has a greenish tinge in the paste. By the use of the file we find that both paste and glaze are soft. The glaze lies unevenly inside the rim underneath, and there may be a more or less irregular space where the glaze is so thin as almost to dis- appear. If there is a crescent mark, or a script W, or any other Worcester mark, we are sure it is Worcester. The painting is not very clearly outlined. Why ? Because the paste is soft and the colour sinks into it, something in the same way that the ink from the pen does on a piece of blotting-paper, though not so badly. The paste itself has been through the kiln, so that the colour is applied to the biscuit, which is absorbent. After the painting is completed, the glaze is applied and the piece fired a second time. Now turn to the Chinese saucer. It is hard both in paste and glaze, as tested by a file, and is all through alike when examined by transmitted light. The blue decoration has a firm outline, and the colour itself is more varied in its shades — that is, the blue is not of one depth in tone ; in fact, some parts appear to have had, as it were, two coats of colour. The process of application was that the cobalt was applied to the raw paste before firing, after it had been dried in the air. The glazing and firing took place after the painting was done. If the two pieces are now placed side by side, the superiority of the Oriental will be apparent. With a power- ful magnifying glass other differences can be noted, such as the tiny points in the Chinese piece made by the melting of the glaze in the kiln. The Salopian blue is very similar in tone to that of Worcester, but the Plymouth blue is a dead, dull, dark blue, and Bristol is finer, but not nearly as fine as the Chinese. The Salopian ^^ ordinary blue-and-white printed Wor- cester is excellent of its kind. The fine quality of the porcelain body, the skill shown in form, decoration, and general style, were approached by Caughley (Salop), though THE ABC OP COLLECTING 13 the transfer-printed ware of the latter factory was a brighter underglaze blue. Just a hint on the designs found on English china. Even during the best period, which extended from 1750 to 1780, when Chelsea and Worcester, to say nothing of the other factories, were producing specimens of peculiar excellence in body and decoration, the English potters displayed but little originality — they simply copied. The Chinese and Japanese fur- nished the patterns for the enamel colouring, and often for the shapes and style. Similarly, when Dresden and Sevres, a little later, became the rage, and were the models of shape, colouring, and painting, our factories copied them, even to the marks ! Dresden i:^ hard paste, and early Sevres is soft. ^^ven/,o^ -Q^V^^^^/ yON^^^f^ A^ ^ aJt . DAVENPORT LO NC 9Q RT SrAFF£>flD5H;RF DaTenport Impressed MarKs. There are various printed marKs. OLD STAFFORDSHIRE, ^^Still tracing backwards from the modern to the old, it is advisable to secure any specimens of china marked Davenport, or Davenport over Longport, or Davenport over Longport over Staffordshire. Generally speaking, the anchor has been the trade mark of the firm. George, Prince of Wales, after- in company with his brother William, who succeeded him on the throne, visited Davenport's works in 1806, and on the accession of William IV. a superb service of china was ordered for the coronation banquet. On this service the crown was first used as a mark. The china produced by this factory Davenport: of Longport, Burslezn. wards George IV. 14 OLD CHINA was (and is) remarkably good in quality and make, both paste and glaze being amongst the best of this period of Staffordshire. I say " and is," because Thomas Hughes & Son, Longport, Staffs., is the present firm, which holds a high place amongst modern makers. The old firm produced excellent tea and dessert services, unsurpassed for rich colour and gilding. Old Indian and Japan patterns, with rich, deep blues and reds, are as faultless in the potting as they are in decoration. The Davenport blue-and-white, either painted or transfer-printed, especially the old Willow pattern, is highly successful. But, remembering that Davenport is scarcely " old " china, the beginner must study the marks first, then the decoration and the gilding— gilt handles, gilt feet, border rims, raised ornaments, and scroll work. In 1793, Thomas Minton, who had been employed as a draughtsman and engraver for various potters, including Josiah Spode, determined to manufacture on his Minton: ^^^ account, but it was only quite near this Stohe=upon=Trent. end of the eighteenth century that he com- menced to make porcelain, his previous efforts having been confined to earthenware. Practically, the Minton sought by ^^ -^ % MINTON— 7»/^ressed. Minion. collectors covered the period about 1798-1810, and approximated to hard paste. It was after much trouble and many visits to Cornwall that Thomas Minton was enabled to secure a regular supply of good and pure material — Cornish china clay and china stone. The products at finst were white, cream-coloured, and blue-printed earthenware. In 1798 semi-transparent porcelain was made, so that the dates given above must be borne in mind. From 1811 to 1821 no porcelain was made, earthenware only being THE A B C OF COLLECTING 15 produced. In the latter year it was again produced, and continues now. Mintons have been noted for the encouragement they have given to foreign artists, such as Jeannest, Belleuse, and Protat, all sculptors, who modelled for them, and, above all, that unique artist, M. Solon, formerly of Sevres. His pdte-sur-pdte is an exquisite production, by which liquid clay is used, instead of colour, to produce designs in very low relief, under the glaze. Solon's works are very costly, but they will be much more so as the years roll on. They are not " old." The chief Minton marks are given above. NOTK. — The Sevres marks and the single capital M are the early ones, the later are printed. Here, again, we are just at the dividing line between " old " and "modern " china. When, in 1770, Josiah Spode acquired the business of Messrs. Turner & Banks, it is stated that he manu- factured earthenware and porcelain, but the evidence is not clear. His son, Josiah, in 1800, certainly did make china, and, more than that, he was the first to use the simple mixture of bone-ash, china stone, and china clay, which has become the standard typical paste or body of English porcelain, and which swept away all the differences between the products of the various factories as far as the paste was concerned. Recent investigations seem to show that the earliest Staf- fordshire porcelain was made about 1745 bj' William L,ittler, at Brownhills, near Burslem, and there is a „ .. certain demand for specimens of his work, especially those which are marked. As early as 1752 he moved to Longton Hall, near Newcastle,, •Staffordshire, and the mark, as given in the illustration, is very distinctive, two ly's crossed, having three or more dots underneath — lyittler, lyongton. It is known that William Duesbury, the Derby manufacturer, worked at Longton Hall, and it appears that he purchased the models and moulds when the works came to an end in 1759, and transferred them to Derby. The British Museum has some pieces of this ware, which the beginner should see, and •at South Kensington there are other specimens. The body, or paste, of Littler's porcelain is rather vitreous or glassy, and, therefore, translucent. It bears a close resemblance to the rougher Chelsea of the earlier period, but in nearly every case it will be found to have the usual marks of any early experimental i6 OLD CHINA period — the cracks, flaws, and imperfections due to imperfect firing ; the uncTcn, wavy surface, with, as it were, a heaviness or Longton Hall Vase and Mark. lumpiness under the base, caused by the heat in the furnace acting upon the glassy frit. But the paste is not the main feature by which Longton Hall can be identified. The first is a brilliant blue, which must have been derived from a very pure cobalt. It is very dark, like the dark blue of Derby, but it is streaked or flooded as if it The Decoration j^ad run upon an uneven surface, so as to give "" T * t ^° ^ depth and richness resembling the flamhe colours of the Chinese, only the Chinese never seemed to get this exact shade of cobalt. The second is that the scroll-work, which in most factories would have been carried out in gilt, is here done in white enamel. It is well to be quite clear on this important point. Previously we have shown that the soft paste gave ragged edges to underglaze colours, so that a gilt border was generally used in the arabesques which (Outlined the compartments or reserves, in order to cover the 2^HE ABC OF COLLECTING i7 edges, but Longton Hall used white enamel for the same purpose, and it was the only English factory which did this. True, gold is found as a decoration, but that gold is matt gold, leaf gold applied by the use of gold size, but not burnt in. The rich, streaky blue body will be noted in the Schreiber collection, as well as on the specimens in the British Museum. Another peculiarity of Longton Hall is the flower decoration, as shown in the illustrations. The flowers are not in groups, or wreaths about the neck or foot, but simply The Peculiarity stuck singly Upon the rim, giving an effect at of Longton Hall j .1 i- 1.^1. j ^ ,. one and the same time both curious -and Decoration. clumsy. These are poor and crude in modelling and colour, as are many of the figures, which -are unmarked as a rule, and look like poor quality Bow or Chelsea, except that the bases are sometimes decorated with raised flowers Longton Hall— CoTered Dish. having the streaky Ivongton Hall blue. Yet, other vases of a much higher type, with most elaborate raised flower and raised bird decoration, ascribed to this factory, have fetched large sums. Three were sold in 1901 for over £240. From the advertisements issued in 1757 and 1758 we learn that white, blue-and-white, and enamelled porcelains were produced, including open-work fruit baskets and plates, leaf basins and plates, figures and flowers of all sorts, melons, and cauliflowers. The commonest forms, as yet recognised, are plates and dishes decorated on the edges with embossed vine leaves, often coloured with the streaky blue which has been described, but which should be seen. Shortly, then, the main facts that the beginner has to remember about Longton Hall c i8 OLD CHINA china are the rich, streaky blue colour, the flowers on their stalks in the round, the peculiar early English flower painting, the translucent paste, and the hints given with regard to the failures of an experimental stage — cracks, crazes, and deviations from form. In 1781 Champion, the maker of Bristol china, sold his patent rights to a company of potters in Staffordshire, at New Hall, Shelton, who made hard pavSte for a short New Hall. time only. It is said that this hard paste was marked with a large script N incised, but generally it had no mark. It resembled in body and glaze the Bristol china, and bears a marked resemblance to it in its decoration. The ingredients given in Champion's specification New Hall. were used, and some of the artists from his factory were employed at New Hall ; yet it appears to be very difficult to identify the hard paste products of this factory, possibly because of its likeness to Bristol. About the year 1800 bone paste — the standard com- position — was adopted, superseding the hard paste, the patent for which had expired in 1796. In 1825 the entire stock of the New Hall concern was sold off", and the works were closed. The only other mark besides the cursive incised N was the name New Hall enclosed in a double circle. This mark was used from about 1820 to 1825. The illustration, which shows the two marks, gives two specimens of New Hall. The teapot was made for one of the THE A B C OP COLLECTING 19 partners in the firm, Charles Bagnall. It is beautifully painted. On one side is a group of children playing at blindman's buflf. On the opposite side is another group of a boy riding on a dog. On the lid are two small figure vignettes. The cup and saucer is of excellent form, and the twisted fluting resembles the simpler forms of Worcester and Derby. It is noteworthy that in 1810 a patent was acquired " for printing landscapes and other designs from copper plates, in gold and platinum, upon porcelain and pottery." With regard to the porcelain of New Hall, as well as to that of I/ongton Hall, comparatively little is known, and it is eminently desirable that the expert on the spot should carry out researches like those of Owen on Bristol, which added so much to the sum of our knowledge of the products of that factory. In the meantime the condemnation so often bestowed upon New Hall of clumsy painting, rough drawing, coarse and crude effects, and so on, requires revision, because many examples recently unearthed show such a style of decoration, with a good body and glaze, that there need be no hesitation in buying fine New Hall china. Spode MarRs. The first Josiah Spode was a hired workman, who was engaged at Thomas Whieldon's pottery until he started in business for himself at Stoke in 1770. In Spode. partnership with Copeland he opened a depot in Portugal Street, Ivondon, where much earthenware goods were sold. Passing over the history of the other partners we come to the third Josiah Spode, who died in c 2 20 OLD CHINA 1829. Six years later Alderman Copeland purchased the entire concern, and soon after Thomas Garrett, the principal traveller for the firm, was taken into partnership. The marks on the earthenware and china closely follow this hi.story, though the first Copeland seems to have had but little interest in the works at Stoke. At first the word SPODE was impressed in the paste, or painted on the glaze, then SPODE FELSPAR PORCELAIN, either impressed, or painted, or printed. The more modern marks were usually printed and accompanied by a name indicating the pattern of the print used for decoration, such as " Castle," intro- duced in 1806, "Roman" 1811, "Turk" 1813, "Milkmaid," "Dagger Border," "Peacock," and "New Temple" 1814. The present proprietors are W. T, Copeland & Sons. Old Spode is worthy of the attention of the collector, and will be increasing in value because of the greater diflSculty in securing fine pieces. The great Josiah Wedg-wood was not a maker of porcelain, though his jasper ware is similar to many specimens of Old Chinese porcelain with regard to its nature Wedgwood. and composition. This ware is classified amongst the pottery, but porcelain was made at Etruria by his nephew, Thomas Byerley, from 1805 to about 1815. The output was small, and even in the museums there are only a few specimens. Curiously, though Wedgwood ware is marked by the highest taste and skill, the Wedgwood china does not exhibit those qualities. The paste is good but the forms are poor, and the decoration does not reach the highest standard. Designs in conventional flowers, in natural flowers, and in low relief without colour were the usual style of decoration. The mark was nearly always WEDGWOOD, stencilled or transfer printed, usually in red and rarely in blue or gold. Remember, it is WEDGWOOD, not WEDGEWOOD, nor WEDGWOOD & CO. W. Smith & Co., of Stockton-on-Tees, stamped " Wedgewood " on their wares, but were stopped by an injunction in 1848. Ralph Wedgwood marked his goods " Wedgwood & Co.," and imitated Josiah's wares. Since 1872 the manufacture of porcelain has been resumed. Caughley is Old China, because the works were closed in 1814, when John Rose, of Coalport, on the opposite side of the River Severn, transferred the plant, after having used it since 1799 as a branch establishment. The coal at Caughley had given THE A B C OF COLLECTING 2i out, and the cost of carrying the unfinished goods by hand — or, rather, by head — was too great. The ware was carried down the hill and across the water by women, who ,_. *" ^7 , bore the burden on their heads all the way. (Shropshire). It was in 1772 that Thomas Turner, who was trained at Worcester, bought the old Caughley pot works, and in 1775 we read, " The porcelain factory is now quite completed, and the proprietors have received and completed orders to a very considerable amount. lyately we saw some of their productions, which, in colour and fineness, are truly elegant and beautiful, and have the bright and lively white of the so-much-extolled Oriental." In 1780 Turner went to France to pick up knowledge from the French factories, and he brought back with him skilled workmen etc Sss, ^ 1.1 in 1795, under the management of the East Derbyshire. ' ° celebrated William Billingsley, who came from the Derby works. Here Billingsley first produced the distinctive granular glassy paste, or body, which he afterwards brought to Pinxton Marks and Ice-Cooler. perfection at Nantgarw and Swansea. His unique flowers — roses especially — are not often found on Pinxton china, for his time D 2 36 OLD CHINA and attention were mainly devoted to the practical side of potting, and the decoration was applied by experienced artists from the Derby factory, which accounts for the resemblance between Pinxton and Derby china, being often painted with sprigs of flowers and landscapes, more or less slightly sketched. Unfortunately, some differences arose between Mr, Coke and Billingsley, so that in 1801 we find the latter at Mansfield, painting and finishing china which he is said to have bought in the white state in Staffordshire. When he left, Pinxton began to decline ; the works were sold in 1804 to Mr. Cutts, and only continued till 1812. Pinxton at the best period is more noted for the beauty of the body and the excellence of the gilding than for the decoration. The latter ware had a different and much inferior body, simply the ordinary quality of all English porcelain quite at the beginning of the nineteenth century, with the exception of Torksey, Worcester, Nantgarw, Swansea, and Coalport, to each of which in succession Billingsley carried his secret, which he most carefully kept to himself. The few marks found on Pinxton are given. Occasionally, the word " Pinxton " is found written in gold, with a pattern number; and both the Roman P and the italic P are ascribed to this factory, though, as a rule, no special mark was used. Perhaps MASON'S PATENT IRONSTONE CHINA is the most widely known of all the later factories, as it is usually marked, either printed in blue or impressed Minor and later in the paste. The patent, which was taken Mason's. Rogers'. °^^ ^° ^^^^ ^^ Charles James Mason, of 6c. Hanley, passed out of his hands in 1851, and the mark was modified to " REAL IRON- STONE CHINA," with or without the name of ASHWORTH. The ironstone china deserves its name ; it is extremely hard and durable, and in its finer forms the imitations of Oriental and so-called Indian patterns are rich in colours and gilding. A sample mark is given. Rogers — John and George — had extensive works at Burslem, where they produced tea and other services from 1786 to 1842, when the factory was bought by James Edwards. The mark used was the name of " ROGERS," impressed or printed ; or, later, " JAMES EDWARDS AND SON," with the Royal Arms above the name. This factory was noted for its light-blue " Broseley " THE A B C OF COLLECTING 37 and " Willow " pattern, and for various others, such as the " bishop," " barley," " mediaeval," " tulip," and " scroll." The mark is given. £gMA toGZKS noCERS (SizmeChlnA hemic d m Some Minor Factories* Marks. In 1795 Messrs. Hilditch & Sons, of Longton, purchased the Church Street works, which had been established in the latter half of the eighteenth century, and rivalled Josiah Spode and Thomas Minton in the quality of the work produced. The tea services were excellent in body, design, and in decoration ; landscape and figure vignettes and imitations of Indian patterns. Then, again, leaves and roses were accurately drawn from nature, and, as it were, carelessly thrown on grounds of various tints. The early mark is given. At Tunstall, Phoenix Works, Messrs. Bridgwood Sc Clarke, early in the nineteenth century, made " white granite " opaque porcelain in large quantities for the American markets, where it successfully competed with French porcelain. The mark is given. In addition to these, there are many other minor and later factories which might be described, but, as the later ones can be easily identified, because they are usually marked with the name of the manufacturer, it is not necessary to say more. Of the minor earlier ones, such as Torksey and Madeley, the records are slight, and the future may yield more information. Meanwhile, the collector goes on for ever, searching, hunting, and securing specimens, from which he derives the keenest gratification, the joy of possession. J8 OLD CHlifA WORCESTER. LADY MARY WORTLEY MONTAGUE, the sprightly letter- writer, long ago declared that " old china is below nobody's taste, since it has been the Duke of Argyll's, whose under- standing has never been doubted either by his friends or enemies." As an object of cultured and serious study, as Old China a relaxation from the business of life, as a ^ , . means of home decoration of the best type, or nobody s taste. as a pastime for the idle man of means, why not collect old china ? If you are a connoisseur, and really know what to buy, old china is a very good investment, too. At the present time Worcester china is much sought after, and fine specimens fetch high prices; therefore these chapters will com- mence with a popular study of Worcester. The factory at Worcester was founded by Dr. Wall, a physician, well skilled in chemistry, who had employed himself in researches and experi- ments so successfully that a practical business was possible in 1751, with W. Davies as manager till 1783. The most brilliant years were from 1768-83, during which period the decoration reached its highest excellence. The early English factories began by making white, or blue- and-white, china in exact imitation of the Chinese, and met with such success as to encourage further imita- -. .. 1 ^ ^r\y tions in colours of both Chinese and Japanese English Factories. porcelain. The earliest Worcester — Dr. Wall's Worcester — consisted of tea services and other articles for domestic use, painted in blue, under the glaze, with Chinese sub- jects. Sometimes the decoration was modified by another pattern, slightly embossed or raised. The characteristics of this early ware are to be found in the paste and the glaze. The paste was 6f a creamy white, very soft and pleasing ; when held up to the light the well-known slightly greenish tint could be detected. The composition of the paste was not known, but practically it was a glassy frit, containing more or less soapstone, which made WORCESTER 39 up the part which was not fusible. Thus it resembled all the early pastes, such as Bow and Chelsea, which were made of fusible glass, varying in composition and therefore in hardness, mixed with as much finely-ground non-fusible material as it would take up and hold. Bone-dust was added to the soapstone or china rock at an early date, whilst later the paste of all English porcelain acquired a typical uniformity, and has to be distinguished by other means. Worcester belongs to the class of " soft paste " china. It can be scratched with the point of a penknife or with a file, or, to take even simpler means, if you rub it with your Distinct! n thumb-nail it will not file the nail, though " hard paste " will do this. The glaze, applied by dipping, gives a glassy covering to the paste or body, and makes it impervious to liquids. By comparison, the Worcester glaze is thinner than that of Bow and Chelsea, and harder than that of Derby. In the very early pieces of Worcester a .slight discoloura- tion is sometimes found, owing to excess of lead in the glaze. A notable distinction enables one who knows to tell in a minute whether the piece under consideration is or is not Worcester, and this is worthy of note for all those who collect old china. On the \ base of cups, saucers, dishes, &c., at the part remote from the : middle and nearest the rim there is a shrinkage of glaze, so clearly \ shown in most pieces as to be a typical Worcester mark, even if I there is no other. Marks are so frequently forged that they cannot by them- selves be trusted, but, taken in conjunction with the paste and the glaze, they afford an additional means of P . identification. The earliest marks are pro- bably the tiny workmen's marks, of which a selection will be given. Then follows the cursive W for Wall till ,1783. Another of the earliest marks is the crescent till 1793, which must not be confounded with the Caughley crescent or C. The square mark indicates the very best Worcester. Following the blue-and-white, and afterwards proceeding side by side with it, Worcester china was painted in colours and gilt, still imitating Chinese and Japanese. The finest imitations were made, until an English form of decoration gave a distinctive character to Worcester by the adoption of transfer printing in 1756, by Robert Hancock, from Battersea, where the process had been applied to 40 OLD CHINA enamels. The " King of Prussia " mu