Beautiful vessels and plates of porcellana, large and small . . . for one Venetian groat you could actually have three bowls so beautiful that no one would know how to devise them better. . . .’ So wrote the young Venetian Marco Polo about the yingqing (`misty blue‘) porcelain he saw on his journeys through China in about 1271-5.

Until this time, China was virtually unknown to Europeans except as `Seres’, the land of silk, although as early as the Tang dynasty of AD 618-906, jewels, horses, medicines, wild animals and literature were flowing into the country from India, Arabia and Japan. (more…)

Japanese Wares

Very little Japanese blue and white porcelain was imported into Europe; the few imports were copies of kraak dishes. These can be distinguished from their Chinese counterparts by heavier potting, the finely bubbled glaze and the presence of `spur’ marks on the base. They fetch £1500-£5000 - more than the Chinese originals. Small dishes, teabowls and saucers made for the Dutch market, and influenced by Delft ware, fetch £300-£ 1 000. (more…)

Despite encompassing some of the most expensive items of furniture ever made, many bookcases are still to be found at affordable prices.

In the 1660s, the English diarist Samuel Pepys had a set of 12 oak cases made to house his collection of books. These are among the first recorded specialised bookcases made for a private individual. Previously, books were considered so precious that small cabinets were constructed to transport them safely from place to place. From the late 17th century, books were increasingly housed in large glazed and fitted bookcases, but it was more than a century before smaller bookcases became commonplace items. (more…)

Glass perches, delft racks, whatnots and canterburies are just a few of the strangely named solutions to our ancestors’ storage and display needs.

Chaucer, in the Miller’s table, written in the 14th century, refers to ‘shelves couched at his beddes head’ — probably for books — but shelving for more general uses was rare before the 16th century. By the 19th century, however, a whole variety of other storage and display solutions had appeared. (more…)

On the Continent

It was probably Buddhist figures such as these that inspired the earliest European porcelain figures — `magots’ or models of humorous little Chinese Buddhas produced on the Continent — at Meissen, Saint-Cloud, Chantilly and Mennecy — from the 1720s to 40s, and in Britain from about 1780.

The Meissen Contribution

The European porcelain figure as we know it today, however, developed not from burial goods or religious models but as centrepieces for the banqueting tables of the aristocracy. (more…)

Modelled ceramic figures of all periods reflect something of their creator’s, and collector’s, view of the world — whether colourful, plain, romantic, statuesque, sentimental, serious or comic.

In most British home there is a fireplace. Above most fireplaces there is a mantel. piece. And on most mantelpieces there are ornaments, 0ften including a pair or several porcelain or earthenware figures.

Since man first discovered that clay could be formed with his hands, he has made figures and models of people, of animals, of situati0ns and of mythical or contemporary personalities in the world about him. Such figures continue to give glimpses of the human situation in which they were created. (more…)

Over the last century, individual potters and decorators have produced unique, sculptural ceramics that stand apart from mass-produced pieces.

The term ‘Art Pottery‘ has been used since the second half of the 19thC century, often interchangeably with the similar ‘studio pottery‘. Both refer to one-off, individually designed and decorated pieces produced in a workshop run by a craftsman or craft group. The term also encompasses the work of artists who finished individually signed pieces in studios set up by firms such as Doulton and Minton. (more…)

The trunk of a longcase clock is perfect for showing off cabinet-making skills, giving the owner not only a timepiece but an attractive piece of furniture.

Too many people, a longcase or ‘brand- father’ clock immediately conjures up nostalgic images of the past. But it is also an ideal combination of mechanics and furniture. A William and Mary marquetry longcase clock can be just as good an example of cabinet-making as, say, a chest of drawers of the same period, and its value will depend on the quality of both case and movement. (more…)

The lure of antique timepieces lies in their combination of art and technology. Visual clues can help you to date a clock and identify its mechanics.

Mechanical timepieces were first made in Europe in 13th-century monasteries to call the monks to prayer. By 1380 many cities had public clocks, although domestic clocks did not appear until the late 15th century. Portable clocks became feasible when the coiled spring was devised as a source of power in the early 16th century. The first true watches date from about 1580 but were rather inaccurate before the invention of the balance wheel around 1675. Clocks are judged on the quality of both movement and case. Rarity alone does not necessarily mean high value, but a pioneering design is desirable. Points to consider include the type of movement and its complexity (for example, if it has a striking system), style of dial and case, the maker and condition. (more…)

From plain Edwardian school clocks to cartel clocks mounted in elaborate ormolu, clocks to hang on the wall come in many shapes and sizes.

The ubiquitous wall dial of the Victorian and Edwardian periods is familiar from countless schools, kitchens and waiting rooms. In fact, wall clocks come in many forms, the fundamental distinction being between spring-driven clocks (which mostly run for eight days) and weight- driven clocks (mostly running for 3o hours). (more…)