Christies

Coming soon at Christies in London, a pair of fabulous Bishop & Stonier vases fitted out as a lamps. The low end of the estimate is £500, so unfortunately i'm out of the running. But what a wonderful buy for who ever bags them!

like buses

Just like buses it seems, when you never thought you'd see one, low and behold two come along one after the other. Only recently I blogged my joy at having finally found a dome shaped cheese dish and cover - even though i had to make do with a "mixed marriage" of an unrelated top and bottom. Then, it just so happened that i was viewing an upcoming sale at my local auctioneers, Nesbits of Southsea, when i spied a complete set. My heart missed a beat and jumped into my throat. Ok, ok, so a bit melodramatic. I was delighted at my good luck find and decided that the I MUST be the owner of the Precious. I discussed with my partner how much I should be willing to pay to secure the winning bid, but then found out to my consternation that the cheese dome was only one part of a 'lot'. It came with a very large Portugese jardiniere which I didn't have high hopes for and which really doesn't fit with my other collecting interests. However, on further investigation, it turns out that the jardiniere is also rather special - being made by the Vista Alegre factory, a quality firm . Whilst i shan't be keeping it, i'll enjoy it while it's here.

p.s It's HUGE! and VERY HEAVY!!

Palawan and other Far East influences

Palawan, an island of the Philippines was the pattern name chosen for pics 3&4. One gets the feeling that although there are clear eastern influences in the choice of birds, flora, fauna, fans etc, the pattern name is often arbitrary. 'Tokio', 'Mandalay', 'Peking', 'Miako', 'Paragon' (pic 2) 'Mikado' (pic 1), are just a few of the pattern names used by Powell Bishop & Stonier and later partnerships for their oriental inspired wares. As the West was gripped by Aesthetic Movement fever in the 1870/80s, more and more home grown versions of Eastern designs flooded the market. The wealthy could afford the "real" thing, ie Japanese Arita porcelain and laquered furniture etc. The less well-to-do had to make-do with Staffordshire pottery versions.

If you are at all interested in the wonderful designs of the Aesthetic period you simply must try to get to London to the V&A where they have an exhibition called the Cult of Beauty. That's were i'll be heading very soon.