Saturday 28 October 2017

Circus Tent

WL is often refereed to as the circus tent pattern.  An inverted version of the pattern forms the top inch or so of the larger XF pattern seen in the previous post.  The shape number for this jug is unclear but may be 678.

Sunday 22 October 2017

XF

XF must be the king for geometric patterns.  I've wanted a vase in this pattern for years, but until now have always been outbid.  So it must be quite a popular pattern, which make sense given that you get so much more decoration for your money.  This example was painted by Vera Bridle who worked at Poole between 1923 and '33, and I think it suits the shape (no 418) really well. 

Sunday 15 October 2017

Lilly Pedley

Same shape and same painter as the last post and this vase came to me from the same collector too.  This time its painted in OS pattern and glazed in the traditional Poole style

Saturday 14 October 2017

One extreme to another

A fraction of the size of the vase in the last post, at just 8 cm tall, this shape number 583 vase was painted, in the RU pattern, by Lilly Pedley, some time between 1925 and 1932.

Sunday 8 October 2017

Nitromors magic

This huge (34cm tall) glazed "Etruscan" vase arrived from Ebay last month. It was listed with what looked like white scuff marks to the surface, and this made sense as these pots are quite susceptible to surface damage.   However when it arrived this scuffing turned out to be white paint - it looked like someone had brushed against it when painting nearby.
Old pots often collect small specks of paint, presumably from being left in situ while ceilings are being rollered.  Paint doesn't stick very well to a glazed surface and usually specks of paint will wash off easily with warm water.  The paint on this pot was a different matter however.  The rough unglazed surface made a perfect canvas and the paint was stuck.   Luckily I remembered reading in a pot conservation guide that nitromors is used by conservators to remove old glue from repairs.  It seemed quite drastic at the time, but an old can of nitromors and several cotton wool buds later and the vase looks to be in factory-fresh condition.  It turns out that nitromors will burn skin, completely melt paint, but magically leaves pottery untouched.
The pattern is AB and it was painted by Ruth Pavely in the early 1930's.  The V&A have a similar vase.