Let's Talk About Pottery & Collectables
Pottery => What's my Pottery? => Topic started by: Elaine on August 16, 2007, 10:46:54 AM
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Are these Delft? If not, what do people think they might be? No marks at all! :-\
And is it possible to tell how old they might be?
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Hi Elaine,
I think we're going to need some close-ups, preferably one of a foot from an oblique angle, and a couple of deatils of the decoration. to start with please.
Martyn.
edit...also some rough dimensions
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For Martyn here's some more pics - and dimensions! Doh! :hb: I always forget to include dimensions :-[ ::)
Largest bowl - 5 inch diameter by 2 inches high. Medium bowl - 4 and 1/2 diameter by 1 and 7/8th high. Small bowl - 3 and 3/4 diameter by 1 and 5/8th high.
And look! There IS a mark, on the base of the middle bowl! Except it's written on it ink, and I think some of it is worn off.
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Hi Elaine,
I wish it were for me but I know next to nothing about this sort of thing other than they're very pretty, just could'nt make them out to well from the long shots.
Experts please.......
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I wonder if this is Chinese, look at the orange just before the beggining of the glaze. I think Millers mention's that that is caused by iron in the clay. The decoration also reminds me of Chinese but I'm not up on the various decorations used on Delft.
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It would be ironic if the tea jar I thought was Chinese turned out to be Delft and these, which I thought might be Delft, turn out to be Chinese! ;D
I just know that my great-aunt lived for some time in Siam and traveled in the far east, so it's quite likely that the things I inherited from her are either Oriental, or have Oriental influences.
Should we perhaps take the word Delft out of the title of this thread, do you think?
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I hope that Elaine is still an active member on this board because this pottery is something that I
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Whoops, pressed the wrong key, darn that Merlot ;D
Now, where was I?..........
This type of pottery is something that I do know something about.
If they are what the pictures appear to suggest then they could well be early English copies of Chinese porcelain. If they were Chinese then the foot-rims would be unglazed, but they look to be glazed. The glaze itself loks like a high fired tin glaze and there is a lot of oxidation in the scratched areas and the firing blister, so I would suggest that these were early 18th/late 17thC pieces, and most likely from the London area. If I'm right, and I hope I am, your bowls will be quite valuable (he says, hoping that they haven't been sold on for a couple of quid!). It might be worth taking them to a reputable dealer or auction house for clarification. :x-fingers: :x-fingers:
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Yep I think Leni's still around somewhere. :)
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I hope so, 'cos she may be sitting on a treasure here!
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I've dropped her an email to ask her to look in here soon. :)
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I hope so, 'cos she may be sitting on a treasure here!
I :heart3: TREASURES...
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Thank you, Anne, for alerting me to the revival of this thread.
Hi, Chimpmad. And thank YOU for reviving the thread! No, the bowls haven't been sold for a couple of quid ;-) They are still sitting in my cabinet.
However, I think I have to disappoint you (not to say myself) as the foot rims do appear to be unglazed. That is to say, there appears to be a coarse sort of glaze over the rim, but then there is a layer of smooth, shiny glaze over the top, which does not reach right to the foot rims.
On the smallest bowl of the three the glaze is very patchy, as you can see, but the dirty areas appear to be without any glaze, which is why the dirt is ingrained (although I have never tried to wash them very thoroughly for fear of damaging them).
Didn't I see something like these on the Antiques Roadshow recently? I remember thinking the one(s) I saw looked a bit like mine, and thinking, "Oh, wouldn't that be nice ...... but I could never get that lucky" ;-)
Leni :-)
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Hello Elaine, I'm glad you still have them, they're a lovely set.
Obviously it's virtually impossible to identify something for sure from photograps, there's no substitute for having a piece in your hand, but I still think that you have a set that is very old (that amount of ingrained dirt and oxidation takes a long time to build up) and potentially quite valuable whether they're English or Chinese. Don't forget that, even if the rims were originally glazed, 200 or so years of moving around on tables or shelves can gradually rub the glaze off.
It would certainly be interesting to take them to somebody who could positively identify them for you, and I don't think you'll be disappointed. They look to be the sort of pottery that would make dear old Henry Sandons' heart beat a little faster, so good luck if you do decide to have them looked at :x-fingers:
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I've just had another look at your bowls as for some reason I found myself today thinking of Chinese cargo wares, but I think that yours are too crudely decorated to be Chinese, and that tin-glaze is so like early delft. Please have them looked at and let us know the outcome, the suspense is in danger of driving me :czy:
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Delft is tin glazed pottery and these appear to be porcelain.
You cannot see through Delft if you hold it to a light and the glaze chips off the edges (fritting) as opposed to porcelain which is solid but allows light through.
The blue appears to have a flow quality to it and the painting is in the Chinese style.
Possibly valuable and would suggest you seek out an auction house.