Early English Chinoiserie Blue And White Transfer Print Jug, Unmarked Except For An Impressed Ring In The Base

Early English Chinoiserie blue and white transfer print Jug, unmarked except for an impressed ring in the base. 7.5 inches tall, 4.25 inches at the base, 4.75 inches at the top, and approximately 6.5 inches at the bulbous center. It appears to have some either professional restoration at the end of the lip of the pouring or in process ‘fixing’. A couple of kiln repairs as well as early kiln related cracking, indicating an earlier production. Two tone blue and white, also indicating multiple overlays and multiple firings (which contribute to further and unexpected kiln fractures). The glaze is phosphatic, due to its fluorescence of a slight ’plum’ coloration and the exposed ceramic is also of nearly the same coloration. A fine early transfer ware piece, while unmarked by the maker most likely hails from the Stoke-on-Trent region where nearly every kiln between 1751 and Spode’s factory marking their china, produced to market demands the Chinoiserie series of porcelain wares that could be afforded by nearly everyone.
Reference: 206-250
Estimate: $100-$150

We ship via USPS and a signature of receipt is required. Shipping and packaging cost will be to Japan $150.00; Europe and the UK is $70 and within the US $30.00. All shipments are sent Priority (overseas) or Ground or Priority in the US and packaged accordingly.

The advent of underglaze transfer printing, perfected at the Spode factory in Stoke-on-Trent in 1784, marked a key moment in the history of British ceramics. It had first been developed in 1751 but was slow to start and used more brown and red colors. Spode broke open the market by catching the Chinoiserie craze as the major importer of Asian porcelain into the British Isles, the British East India Company, dramatically reduced its importation of Asian porcelains, and simultaneously dramatically cut the price of tea and coffee imports.
Transfer printing was developed in response to a call by English consumers for less expensive, mass-produced wares. Customers wanted embellishment on their previously plain utilitarian wares. Initially the patterns were oriental in flavor, as Chinese blue was a favorite of the time.
Prior to the development of transfer printing only the most affluent English could afford complete dinnerware sets as every dish had been carefully hand painted by an artisan. This was a labour intensive and costly process. Transfer printing allowed hundreds of sets of dinnerware to be produced in a fraction of the time it would have taken to hand paint these items, and for a fraction of the cost.
Transfer printing is a process by which a pattern or design is etched onto a copper (or other metal) plate. The plate is then inked, and the pattern is "transferred" to a special tissue. The inked tissue is then laid onto the already bisque fired ceramic item, glazed, and fired again. Initially patterns were transferred to the ceramic items after glazing, but the ink often wore off, thus "under printing" was born. Transfer items have a crisp, almost decal look about them. If you look closely, you can often see the place where the transfer design ends. Often these are the areas where the pattern doesn't quite match, like wallpaper.

Notes: See photos, possible expert repairs or repairs during manufacture, kiln fractures at base, coloration of phosphatic porcelain, unmarked but impressed ring at base

$100 - $150

4.75" x 6" x 7.5"

Home Decor, Porcelains / Fine China

20%

Richard Gabriel | (781) 883-6639 | gabriel@calixbooks.com

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