OLD CHINA
China constituted an important part of the household equipment in
colonial days, and while not as antique as pewter and wooden ware, it
outrivaled both in beauty and popular favor. Its daintiness of coloring,
variety of make, and exquisiteness of texture afforded a welcome change
from the somber-colored and little varied ware hitherto used; and its
fragility proved of wondrous interest to the careful housewife, causing
her to bestow upon it her tenderest care and to zealously guard it
against harm, since it was her delight to boast that her sets were
intact. To-day it is equally appreciated, and it is displayed on the
shelves of built-in cupboards, with all the pride of possession
exhibited by its original owners.
[Illustration: PLATE LIII.--Peacock Plate of Delft, very rare; Decorated
Salt Glaze Plate, about 1780.]
Old cupboards are somehow always associated with old china in this
country, and in most instances they are worthy of the admiration in
which they are held. In colonial times, cupboards formed a decorative
feature of the house furnishings, and they were fashioned with as much
regard for shape and finish as the rooms in which they were to be
placed. In time they came to be considered almost indispensable
adjuncts, and with their increase in favor, their development became
marked. Perhaps the finest type is that with the shell top, some
excellent examples of which are still preserved, notably in the Brown
Inn at Hamilton and in the Dummer house at Byfield, Massachusetts.
[Illustration: PLATE LIV.--Liverpool Pitcher, showing Salem Ship; Old
Chelsea Ware; Canton China Teapot; Wedgwood, with Rose decoration. Very
rare.]
[Illustration: PLATE LV.--Gold Luster Pitcher; Staffordshire Pitcher
with Rose decoration; Peacock Delft Pitcher; Jasper Ware Wedgwood
Pitcher. Blue and White.]
Of all the old wares used here, salt glaze is most rarely found, most
collections including not even a single specimen. This is probably due
in a great measure to its fragility; it is not owing to its scarcity of
import, as large quantities of this ware were brought here in early
times. Examples now found are principally of Staffordshire manufacture,
made between 1760 and 1780, though much of the ware that was made about
1720, belonging to the so-called second period, was shipped here.
A study of all forms of salt glaze is of interest, but that of English
manufacture is of most importance to American collectors, for it is that
type that the colonists imported, and with which American collections
are most closely associated.
The process of salt glaze manufacture was known in England as early as
1660, and a familiar legend as to its origin was that it was
accidentally discovered through the boiling over of a kettle of brine,
the salt running down the outside of the earthen pot, and, when cold,
hardening upon it, forming a glaze. This theory has been discredited by
later scientists, and it is not unlikely that it was the invention of
some imaginary individual, but however that may be, the ware in itself
is of unusual attractiveness, and records show that upon its
introduction into Staffordshire, it superseded in favor the dull lead
glaze.
The first ware finished by this method was coarse and brown, a type that
remained in vogue until the early years of the eighteenth century, when
a gray ware was produced. Some of this latter found its way to America,
but the type most familiar here is that manufactured in the closing
years of the eighteenth century,--a ware with a white or nearly white
body, thin and graceful in contour, and characterized by a very hard
saline glaze.
Pepper pots, soup tureens, plates, and pitchers were among the most
common pieces manufactured, though teapots in various shapes, bottles,
vases, etc., were also made. Some of these pieces have a plain center
and decorated border, while others show an entirely decorated surface.
[Illustration: PLATE LVI.--The Shepherd Toby, one of the rarest Tobies;
English Toby. Very old; Very old Toby, showing Cocked Hat.]
Another output of the Staffordshire factories, now much valued here, are
the old toby jugs, many excellent examples of which were brought here
and have been carefully preserved. In their way they are as interesting
as the finest china bits, their gay coloring and quaint shape affording
a striking contrast to the delicately tinted and daintily shaped
Lowestoft and like wares.
The first tobies were in reality scarcely more than hollow figures to
which a handle had been attached, but as time went on they grew more and
more like mugs, and while at first the cap or hat lifted off, forming a
cover, the succeeding style had the hat incorporated into the mug.
Tobies are broadly classed as Staffordshire, and while this is probably
true of a large portion, Dutch and German tobies as well as French ones
are not uncommon. A supposed example of the last named is included in
the Page collection at Lynn, and is known as the Napoleon toby. It is
thought to be French from the fact that the likeness of the little
corporal is not a caricature. English potters delighted to depict
Bonaparte, but they seldom gave him the attractive countenance of this
jug. They made him tall and thin, or short and abnormally fat, and they
decked him in queer clothes, and labeled him "Boney." This jug depicts
Napoleon in a very pleasant guise, suave of countenance and very well
dressed. There is a smoothness of texture and finish about the work
which marks it as distinct from the English tobies, which unfortunately
frequently lacked these desirable qualities.
English tobies are sometimes classified as young and old tobies. The
terms are expressive, for the young toby is a figure standing, as if
full of vigor and life, with a jovial, happy-go-lucky expression, while
the old toby is represented seated, with a worldly-wise face that has
the appearance of having experienced life to the fullest. Both types
always carry a mug in one hand, or both hands, from which a foaming
liquid is about to issue. The coloring of the old toby is principally
yellow, while the young toby is a combination of brown and yellow. Of
course, both these colorings are varied with others.
Tobies show considerable variety in modeling and decoration. Some are
jovial in appearance, others placid, and still others leering. In fact,
every kind of a toby is represented, except a dry one. In addition to
depicting the figures of human beings, some tobies represented animals,
and not a few were in the form of teapots. The latter were generally
finished in blue, with a band of green and a bit of copper luster, and
in height they varied from twelve to eighteen inches.
Although these drinking mugs were made in many factories, none bear
hallmarks, save those made at Bennington, and, in consequence, those are
more highly prized by connoisseurs. A unique specimen among the output
of this factory has no mug in the hand, the arms being arranged close to
the body, which has the appearance of having no arms at all.
Delft ware, which is at the present time enjoying great favor among
collectors, made the country where it originated famous, and its history
is in reality the history of Holland's commercial rise.
Besides its age, old Delft has the charm of individuality. As the
designs were handworked, the ware lacks the precision in drawing that
later stamped pieces have, and shows softened outlines instead of
sharply defined pictures. Nor is old Delft ware so intense in coloring
as its descendants of to-day. Comparing them side by side on a plate
rail, or hanging on the wall, old Delft is told by its soft, beautiful
blue. Then there is the charm of association. Coming from a nation of
thrift and exemplary housekeeping, Delft, much more than fragile glass,
aristocratic china, or curious foreign objects, appeals to the collector
as a cheerful, comfortable, homelike thing to collect.
There are undoubtedly many good specimens in this country to-day, but
many more are inaccessible. Connecticut, as well as New England
generally, has considerable, for the merchant princes who brought so
many other treasures to Eastern ports brought also Delft. How much more
of this charming old ware is hidden under peaked roofs of
story-and-a-half farmhouses in some of the old Dutch settlements along
the Hudson and on Long Island, is unknown, but perhaps we shall know in
another generation or so.
Among our specimens we find more of the English than the Dutch Delft.
The latter, which is the original ware, took its name from the town of
Delft, where the ware was first produced, and which, for several
centuries, continued to be the chief center of the Delft industry.
Although it was probably made as early as the latter part of the
fifteenth century, but little is known of it until about one hundred
years later. Its origin was an attempt on the part of Dutch potters to
imitate, in a cheaper form, Chinese and Japanese wares. At that time
were made large importations of Eastern wares, and Holland, as the only
European power allowed a port by Japan, had a great variety of types to
copy. The first potteries were established at Delft about the year 1600,
and almost from its inception the industry was protected by a trust. For
nearly one hundred and fifty years, the protection of this trust or
"Guild of St. Luke" made Delft an important manufacturing center, giving
employment to nearly one twelfth of its inhabitants. The best examples
of this old Dutch Delft are beautiful copies of Chinese and Japanese
porcelain, which are hardly distinguishable from the Oriental.
A fact worth noting in connection with the rapid rise and great
popularity of Delft is that the combination or Guild which was
instrumental in the prosperity of the industry was also at least partly
responsible for its downfall. In Holland, an independent maker could not
flourish, but the progressive English made it very well worth while for
workmen to emigrate.
There was another and perhaps more potent factor in the decline of the
Dutch Delft industry; the very success of Delft potters became their
ruin. The market was glutted with their products, and there ceased to be
the same demand for it as formerly. Gradually, the English ware, made
of better clay, although cheaper in price, supplanted the Dutch ware,
even in Holland, and as early as 1760 the struggle for existence began
among the Dutch potteries. Of the thirty establishments existing in the
beginning of the century, only eight were working in 1808, and most of
these soon after stopped.
The most common pieces made, in point of numbers, were the Delft plates.
Some excellent examples of these are found in the Page collection at
Newburyport, one, a peacock plate, being a good example of Dutch Delft
in one of its most popular patterns. Another shows the design of a
basket of flowers, and this same adornment is on an old English platter,
a piece that deserves not only a compliment to its beauty, but also a
tribute to its Dutch-English durability, since within a few years it has
been used to hold all of a New England boiled dinner.
Delft tile was produced almost as commonly as plates, although at first
it was used to illustrate many designs essentially Dutch, and also
religious subjects. It is on record that the _Boston News Letter_ of
1716 advertised the first sale of "Fine Holland Tile" in America, and in
that same paper, three years later, is a notice of "Dutch Tile for
Chimney." From that date on, all through the century, one may find
recurring advertisements of chimney tiles, on the arrival of every
foreign ship. They must have been imported in vast numbers in the
aggregate, and they were not expensive, yet they are rare in New
England.
Americans have always been patrons of Delft ware, and as a result a
representative lot of the very best types is found here, and while it is
to be regretted that the old tiles are not included in any great numbers
in this list, yet those preserved are eminently satisfactory.
An English writer has said that controversy always makes a subject
interesting. Lowestoft was already so enchanting a topic that the
searchlight of exposition was scarcely needed to reveal additional
charms.
Of the several wares that have been labeled Lowestoft, there seem to be
four distinct varieties. There is the Simon-pure, soft-paste, Lowestoft
china, made and decorated in the town of Lowestoft; there is the
so-called Lowestoft, which is purely Oriental, being both made and
decorated in China; there is probably ware made in China and decorated
in Lowestoft; and there is probably ware made in Holland and decorated
in Lowestoft. All of these may bear the printed name of the town, since
members of the company which traded in them resided at that place. Doubt
has been cast upon every one of these four wares, but the first two, at
least, seem to be cleared of all uncertainty.
For the last half of the eighteenth century, a factory existed at
Lowestoft. This is true, beyond the shadow of a doubt. It was, however,
a small factory, employing at its best but seventy hands, and having but
one oven and one kiln. It is simply impossible that great quantities of
hard-glaze porcelain should have been brought from overseas, to be
decorated, and then fired in this one small kiln. If the whole output
charged up to Lowestoft had been really hers, the factory must needs
have been the largest in England, which it certainly was not.
The first ware produced was of a dingy white, coarse, and semi-opaque.
The glaze was slightly "blued" with cobalt, and speckled with bubbles
and minute black spots, which seemed to show careless firing. When
viewed by transmitted light, the pieces had a distinctly yellowish
tinge. There was never any distinctive mark, as in the case of Crown
Derby.
About 1790 a change for the better took place in the character of the
ware. Certain French refugees, driven from their own country by the
lawlessness of the great Revolution, began to come into England. One of
these men, who was named Rose, obtained employment at the Lowestoft
works, where he soon became head decorator, and introduced taste as well
as delicacy of touch into the product. Underneath many Lowestoft handles
will be found a small rose, which denotes that the work was done by him.
The rose is his mark, but before this was known, people supposed that it
merely represented the coat of arms for Lowestoft borough, which was the
Tudor rose.
Roses set back to back appear on the highest grade of Lowestoft china;
and at its best the ware was finer than any sent out by Bow and Chelsea.
The Lowestoft red is of a peculiar quality, varying from carmine to
ashes of roses, and often approaching a plum color. Roses and garlands
of roses in these lovely hues of pink and purple distinguish this china.
Dainty and familiar are the flowers and sprigs in natural colors, with
delicate borders in color and gold.
A familiar style of decoration was that of the dark blue bands, or dots,
or other figures, heavily overlaid with gold and often with coats of
arms. This ware is a hard-paste porcelain, and was doubtless made and
decorated in China. The fact that some of it bears the mark of "Allen
Lowestoft," and that Mr. Allen was manager of the Lowestoft works at
this time, proves nothing beyond the fact that when the dealer sent his
order to China to be filled, he ordered his name marked on the bottom.
Small quantities of undecorated ware may have been brought from China
and Holland to be painted, but we have no record of any such
transactions; the duty was heavy, and the amount of such ware imported
must have been inconsiderable. China was doing this same work for other
countries, and it is only reasonable to suppose that the managers of the
Lowestoft factory sent the greater part of their orders to China to be
filled by Chinese workmen upon Chinese material.
This also explains the failure of the company. It is recorded upon good
authority that the ruin resulted partly from the sharp competition with
the Staffordshire wares, but was precipitated in 1803 by the wreck of
one of the vessels carrying a cargo of porcelain, and by the burning of
the Rotterdam warehouse by the French army.
Rotterdam, where Lowestoft ware was stored, was the seat of an immense
commerce between Holland and China. It seems but natural that their
trade in common Delft wares should lead the Lowestoft company into
communication with wholesale importers of Chinese porcelain, from whom
they could purchase large supplies; and should also lead them into the
establishment, in England, of a more highly remunerative branch of their
business, through underselling the Dutch East India Company.
It was customary for the Dutch firms to send over to their foreign
settlements shapes and designs obtained from European sources, to be
reproduced by native hands. The Lowestoft people did what all other
merchants had done before them, and through the same channel forwarded
to China the designs of coats of arms, English mottoes, and initials
that were to be printed upon the porcelain which they had undertaken to
supply.
And so the great conflagration of the Lowestoft controversy was
furnished with fuel, and there is no knowing where it will end, because
conclusive proof is so slight in each case and the partisans so eager
and aggressive. Meantime, our grandmother's sprigged china remains a joy
and a delight, whether or no we dare to call it genuine Lowestoft.
There is no mystification about Crown Derby, but the old ware, which
along with Lowestoft was beloved of the colonists, is as distinctive as
any, and fortunate indeed is the individual who can boast of having in
his possession a specimen. The works of Derby were established by a
French refugee, named Planche, who had been sojourning in Saxony until
the death of his father, when he came to Derby in 1745, bringing with
him the secret of china manufacture, as he had learned it in Saxony. We
have reason to suppose that he made in Derby many china figures of cats,
dogs, shepherdesses, Falstaffs, Minervas, and the like, which William
Duesbury, who was an expert enameler in London, colored for him.
Unfortunately, none of this early output of the factory was marked, and
in consequence it has become sadly confused, not only with the work of
Bow and Chelsea, but with that of Lowestoft as well. After 1770, a mark
was adopted, and the ware after that date is easily distinguishable.
William Duesbury bought out Planche's interest in the Derby works,
though he did not dispense with Planche's services. Keenly artistic,
with a taste at once discriminating and appreciative, Duesbury combined
a winning personality with his intellectual gifts. He possessed the
faculty of securing the services of potters of unusual worth, and
throughout his management, which continued until his death in 1796, he
maintained in his output a standard of pure English art work of the
highest order.
Prominent in the group of potters in his employ stands the name of
William Billingsley, who was connected with the factory from 1774 to
1796. At Derby he established his reputation as a painter of exquisite
flowers, and his work is characterized by a singularly true perception
of intrinsic beauty and decorative value, being original and unhampered
by traditional technique. The rose was his favorite flower; he
invariably painted the back of a rose in his groups, and his justly
famed "Billingsley Roses" are exceedingly soft in their treatment.
Another favorite of his is the double-flowered stock, either yellow or
white, and always shaded in gray.
In 1785 Duesbury associated with himself his son, the second William
Duesbury, and then followed the most successful period of the work,
being in reality the Crown Derby epoch _par excellence_. After the death
of the elder Duesbury, the second William Duesbury became sole owner of
the Derby works, but failing health compelled him to take Michael Kean
into the firm as partner. After the death of the younger Duesbury, Kean
assumed control of the whole works, but his mismanagement soon resulted
in the sale of the factory to Robert Bloor in 1810.
This marked the commencement of a new dispensation, and after this date
the trademark became "Bloor-Derby." For a time things went on in the old
way, but soon Bloor, in his eagerness to amass a fortune, yielded to
temptation and began to put on the market ware that had been
accumulating in the storehouse for sixty years, and which Planche and
the Duesburys had considered of inferior quality and discarded. This
ware he decorated with so-called Japan patterns, to hide defects and, to
make a bad matter worse, he used for coloring the flowing under-glaze
blue, which was wholly unsuited to the soft glaze of the Delft ware, and
was sure to "run" in the glost oven.
The train of ruin was now well laid, and by 1822 Bloor was forced to
resort to auction sales in the factory, in order to dispose of his
output. The result was an utter loss of reputation for factory and
product, and before the manufacture had reached the century mark of its
existence, Derby china was relegated to the past.
Many beautiful specimens of Crown Derby were imported to this country,
one of the finest being in Mrs. William C. West's collection at Salem,
showing the head of Bacchus with grapevine and wreath decoration, the
whole beautifully colored.
Expressive of the greatest heights which English pottery reached, is the
ware of Wedgwood, and a review of his achievements forms the most
interesting chapter in the history of England's ceramic art. Of a family
of potters, Josiah Wedgwood early exhibited the traits which later made
him so justly famous, and a review of his life from the age of eleven
years, when he was put to work in the potworks, as a thrower, until his
death in 1795, covering a period of fifty-four years, is a review of the
most remarkable story of progressiveness in a chosen profession ever
recorded.
During the early days of his pottery making, about five years after his
apprenticeship had expired, Wedgwood became associated with Thomas
Whieldon, a potter who had attained considerable success in the
manufacture of combed and agate wares, and the period of their
partnership, which ended in 1759, was of benefit to both. One of
Wedgwood's first successes was made at this time, in the invention of a
green glaze which Whieldon used with excellent effect on his
cauliflower ware.
With the expiration of this partnership, Wedgwood returned to Burslem,
where he soon purchased an interest in the Ivy Works, where he worked
independently, and laid the foundation for many of his future successes.
Among other things he experimented in perfecting the coarse cream wares
then on the market, and six years after his coming to the Ivy Works he
succeeded in producing his first real achievement, "Queen's Ware."
The success of this ware was most pronounced, and its popularity caused
Wedgwood to realize that a division of labor which would allow him to
look after the creative part and supply some one else to care for the
commercial side of the undertaking was most important. In 1768, Thomas
Bentley was taken on for this purpose, and at the new works, to which
Wedgwood had previously removed, and known as the Bell House or Brick
House, the new regime went into effect. The popularity of Queen's Ware
had netted him enough to allow him to make finer productions, and after
the finish of several schemes, in 1769, he removed to the famous factory
known as Etruria, where his finest work was accomplished, and at
which place he remained until his death.
The several wares he manufactured are as varied as they are beautiful,
and, in addition, he possessed the power to reproduce in a remarkable
degree. This is best exemplified in his replica of the famous Portland
Vase, which is so perfect that it has often deceived even connoisseurs.
An amusing incident is related in connection with one of his
reproductions, a Delft piece of a dinner set, which had become broken,
and which he fashioned and sent to the owner by a messenger. The
messenger started for his destination, which was but a short distance,
but he did not appear again for a week. Upon his return, Wedgwood
questioned him, and learned that the family was so delighted with the
reproduction that they had kept the messenger, feasting him the entire
time.
While old Wedgwood in all its forms is appreciated in this country, for
some reason or other cream ware and jasper ware are especially favored
among American collectors. Fine pieces of both are included in the
Rogers collection at Danvers, the jasper piece being an especially fine
specimen.
A review of old china would not seem complete without including the
luster wares, several excellent examples of which are in American
collections. Silver-tinted comes first in point of rarity, though the
rose-spotted Sunderland luster is a close second in this respect, and
really commands a higher price. Originally, silver luster was a cheap
imitation of silver, and first specimens were lustered inside as well as
out, to further increase the deception. When the ware became common, and
the deception was well known, silver luster was used only on the
exterior of vessels in decorations, and occasionally in conjunction with
gold luster. After 1838, which year marked the introduction of
electroplating, silver luster declined in favor, and shortly after the
completion of the first half of the nineteenth century ceased to be
manufactured. Numberless beautiful articles were made of this ware,
including quaint candlesticks, teapots, cream jugs, bowls, salt cellars,
and vases.
Copper and gold luster are likewise shown in a variety of attractive
forms, and these, unlike silver luster, were never made as shams.
Wedgwood is credited with having first made the copper-and gold-lustered
wares, but authentic proof of this is lacking. Jugs were often lustered
with gold and copper, the latter usually characterized by bands of
brilliant yellow or colored flowers, sometimes printed and sometimes
painted. The gold luster was especially fine, and it is this type,
together with copper luster, that is most commonly found. Excellent
specimens of gold-lustered ware are found in a collection at Lynn, one
piece of exceptional interest having been secured at the time of the
Civil War by a party of Northern soldiers while devastating a Southern
plantation.