English « Past Imperfect, The Art of Inventive Repair

Posts Tagged ‘English’

Black basalt Wedgwood teapot, c.1920

Sunday, January 14th, 2018

This small squat black basalt teapot has raised classical sprig decoration. It was made in England in the first quarter of the 1900s and measures 3.5 inches high and 6.25 inches from handle to spout. On the underside are the incised marks WEDGWOOD, 42, 10, SW.

Typical of an enormous number of 18th and 19th century teapots from all around the globe, metal spouts were attached to replace damaged ones, or to insure that undamaged spouts would remain so. Many were made of tin but some, such as this, were made of silver.

Sadly, the knob on the lid broke off during shipping. Of course I could just glue it back on but I think I’d rather see a silver replacement to match the spout in its place.

This identical teapot has its original spout.

Photo courtesy of eBay

Tags:basalt, English, metal spout, pottery, Wedgwood
Posted in teapot | No Comments »

Blue & white transferware dish, c.1830

Sunday, December 17th, 2017

This serving dish was made in England by Wedgwood, c.1830. It is decorated with a blue transfer scene depicting buildings, ships, trees, and overscaled flowers along the border. On the underside is the stamped mark “WEDGWOOD’S STONE CHINA”. It measures 9 inches square.

Well over 100 years ago when this dish broke in half, it was brought to a “china mender” who repaired it using 12 metal staples, aka rivets. Originally it had a cover but I am guessing that when it took a tumble the lid was broken beyond repair. But at least the more functional piece survived and thanks to the handiwork of a 19th century restorer, this dish can still be used today.

This covered dish of similar form and decoration still has its original cover.

Photo courtesy of eBay

Tags:blue & white, English, staples/rivets, Wedgwood
Posted in bowl/dish | 1 Comment »

Samuel Hollins stoneware coffee pot, c.1800

Saturday, December 2nd, 2017

This impressive drabware coffee pot was made by Samuel Hollins in Stoke-on-Trent, England, c.1795-1800. Made from unglazed dry bodied stoneware, it has sprigged decoration on the top portion, a ribbed lower portion, and silver lustre painted trim lines. It measures 8.5 inches high and 7.75 inches wide from handle to spout. On the underside is the impressed mark S. HOLLINS.

It appears that soon after the coffee pot was made, the tip of the spout broke off and the lid went missing. Luckily for the owner, a local tinsmith made a sturdy metal replacement lid, adding a hinge and a sawtooth edged collar. Although quite different in appearance, the new lid is more likely to remain on the pot, and the chance of another mishap his less likely.

This one shows what the original spout and lid would have looked like on mine.

Photo courtesy of WorthPoint

Tags:English, metal lid, metal spout, pottery, stoneware
Posted in chocolate/coffee pot | No Comments »

London shape Coalport teapot, c.1812

Sunday, August 13th, 2017

This stately London shape porcelain teapot was made by the Coalport Porcelain Works of England, c.1812. It has a linear pattern in gold with red accents of birds perched on the branches of a fantastical tree, complete with a nest resembling an upturned straw boater hat. It measures 6.5 inches high and 10 inches from handle to spout.

Naturally, I prefer the side riddled with 21 metal staples, as I feel they add a layer of unintentional whimsy to the printed pattern beneath. The final photo shows the teapot on display at the exhibit Make-Do’s: Curiously Repaired Antiques, on view now through October 1 at Boscobel House and Gardens. Come see it, along with hundreds of other examples from my collection of antiques with inventive repairs.

Tags:English, porcelain, staples/rivets
Posted in teapot | No Comments »

Blue transfer printed pearlware jug, c.1825

Saturday, August 5th, 2017

This Dutch form pottery jug with pearlware glaze and sparrow beak spout was made in England in the first quarter of the 19th century. Standing nearly 4.25 inches high and 5.75 inches from handle to spout, it has blue transfer decoration, combining a pastoral scene with a shepherd, ancient ruins, and a lush border of flowers and fruit along the rim.

Well over 100 years ago, the original loop handle became detached and immediate surgery was needed. Luckily for the jug and its owner, a tinker made a metal replacement handle and bolted it to the jug. To help mask the repair, the new handle was painted blue and white to match the existing decoration. Curiously, a hole on the side was filled with lead, much like a cavity in a tooth. Not the most elegant repair job I have seen but it certainly does the trick.

This jug with similar form and decoration shows what my jug might have looked like before its accident.

Photo courtesy of eBay

Tags:blue & white, English, metal handle, pottery, transferware
Posted in jug | 1 Comment »

“Love and live Happay” teapot, c.1805

Saturday, July 15th, 2017

I am a big fan of ceramics with bold, graphic decoration, especially ones with text, and this charming example certainly fits the bill. This Prattware pottery teapot, proclaiming “Love and live Happay (sic),” was made in England in the early 1800s. Standing 5.25 inches high and 10 inches wide, it is painted in typical Prattware colors, including green, yellow, blue, and brown.

It appears that long ago, Mr. Butterfingers loved his teapot so much that he tossed it up in the air with glee, but didn’t catch it on its way back down. Sadly, the lid and handle shattered beyond repair, but thankfully a tinsmith was able to craft a nifty metal replacement handle so the teapot was able to be loved again and live happ(a)ily ever after.

This teapot with similar shape and decoration shows what the original handle and lid on mine might have looked like.

Photo courtesy of Agnes Ashe

Tags:English, metal handle, pottery, prattware
Posted in teapot | 4 Comments »

Ridgway relief molded jug, c.1835

Saturday, June 24th, 2017

This relief molded salt glaze jug from 1835 was made in England by Ridgway. It is decorated with scenes from Robert Burns’ poem, “Tam O’Shanter,” written in 1790. It measures 6.75 inches tall and is incised on the underside: “Published by W. RIDGWAY & CO. MANLEY, October 1, 1835.”

Although this jug maintains its original pewter lid, its overscaled ear-shaped metal handle is a replacement, made by a tinsmith over 150 years ago.

Here’s the same jug with its original handle intact.

Photo courtesy of Andrew Dando

Tags:English, metal handle, pottery, salt glaze
Posted in jug | 3 Comments »

Character jug with stapled face, c.1924

Saturday, June 17th, 2017

Is this another monster created by Dr. Frankenstein? Not exactly, but it looks like his English relative.

This blue-glazed pottery character jug in the form of British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin was designed by Percy Metcalfe and produced in Surrey, England, by Ashtead Potters between 1923-1929. It stands 7.5 inches high and is boldly marked on the underside and numbered 202 of a limited edition of one thousand.

We will never know for sure if the jug became broken accidentally or if it was thrown in disgust as a result of a disagreement over the political views of the Right Honorable Stanley Baldwin. Either way, four small metal staples were used to repair his broken face. Ouch, that’s gotta hurt!

Three other commemorative jugs were made in this series. Shown here in Pearl Barley glaze, they include Attorney General Lord Hailsham (Douglas McGarel Hogg), British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, and Australian Prime Minister Stanley Melbourne Bruce.

Photo courtesy of Ashtead Pottery

Tags:commemorative, English, pottery, staples/rivets
Posted in jug | No Comments »

Wedgwood barrel-form teapot, c.1780

Saturday, April 15th, 2017

This basalt stoneware barrel-form teapot was made in England by Wedgwood, and in production from 1780 to 1790. It measures 3.5 inches high and 6 inches wide from handle to spout. The underside has the impressed mark “WEDGWOOD, Z, 1x”, and “B257” is hand painted in gold on the underside of the teapot and its lid.

Sadly for some but happily for me, over 200 years ago this small teapot slipped from the hands of someone who must have cherished it and the spout broke off. It was taken to a jeweler or tinker who replaced it with a silver spout on a scalloped plate. I have many examples of spouts with the same design, so I assume they were made in bulk by jewelers to have on hand, ready to be popped on to similarly damaged teapots. The lid’s knob broke off at a later date but was not replaced. I am hoping one day to make my own replacement knob of the same design, perhaps in silver to match the spout.

This undamaged teapot shows what the original spout and Sibyl-form knob looked like before they were damaged.

Photo from British Teapots & Tea Drinking by Robin Emmerson.

Tags:basalt, English, metal spout, silver
Posted in teapot | No Comments »

Georgian creamware teapot, c.1790

Saturday, April 1st, 2017

I love finding pieces with multiple repairs and this lovely soft paste pottery creamware teapot with pearlware glaze fits the bill nicely. It was made in Staffordshire or Leeds, England, in the late 1700s and is hand painted with spritely polychrome floral decoration on both sides. It measures 5 inches high and is marked with what appears to be A+A in red on the underside of the pot and lid.

But of course the reason it ended up in my collection is the three inventive repairs, which include a slightly exaggerated bronze handle covered in rattan, a brass collar concealing a chipped spout, and a cracked lid repaired with brown paper tape. I believe each repair was done years apart so one can only assume that the previous owners of this teapot were a clumsy lot.