Ceramics & Glass
West German Bay Keramik Pitcher with stylised floral designs, late C20th
Price: £45Founded by Eduard Bay in the 1930s and based in Ransbach Baumbach in the heart of the main West German pottery producing region, Bay Keramik grew to be one of the most prolific producers of ceramics in the ‘West German’ style and continued production into the 1990s. This piece retains its original paper label and the format of this allows dating to the 1970s/1980s. The jug has almost a slightly rustic feel and recalls much earlier German ceramic items. The numbers on the base indicate the form number but it has not been possible to identify this.
Murano Art Glass Dish, 1960s
Price: £35A Pair of Royal Doulton Ewers, marked, early C20th
Price: £150Art Glass Doorstop with Starburst and Bubble designs, perhaps British, late C20th
Price: £45Iridescent art glass Vase with loop handles, possibly continental
Price: £45Golden Amber Webb Glass Vase, marked, 1950s
Price: £45Thomas Webb began his glass career in 1829, when he became a partner in the Wordsley Glassworks. Various career changes followed and in 1859 he was joined by his sons Thomas Wilkes Webb and Charles Webb and began trading as Thomas Webb & Sons based in Stourbridge. The firm was run by various family members until mergers started to occur in the early twentieth century and Sven Fogelberg, previously from Swedish glassworks Kosta, became manager in 1932. Production continued with more mergers in the 1960s and 1970s until the firm closed in 1990. This vase was made by Thomas Webb during the 1950s as part of their 'Gay Glass' range in a design called 'Old English Bull's Eye' and has the typical 'Webb England' mark to the base.
Daum Crystal Glass Swallowtail Bowl, signed Daum-France circa 1960
Price: £180Vases in this form were produced by the well known French maker Daum in the 1950s and the 1960s. The sizes and designs can vary with some examples measuring up to two feet and intended as table ornaments. This piece is rather smaller and perhaps more elegant. The crystal glass is of extremely high quality and reflects the light in a very attractive way. The weight is good and the glass itself is thickly blown and expertly formed, The flat base shows signs of bevelled edging at the exterior and one of the sides bears the typical etched Daum mark with 'Daum' and 'France' separated by a device comprising an upright line with two crosses.
The more petite size and the quality of the manufacture and design make this a most appealing example of Daum's work at its best. Dating can be assumed to be around 1960 if not slightly before. A desirable piece indeed for collectors of twentieth century art glass.
Fairing Figurine - The last in bed to put out the light, German, late Nineteenth Century
Price: £25The various figures were made in white glazed porcelain with coloured decoration. The compositions were sculptural and often accompanied by an inscription, as here. Many models are known. Two typical examples are 'Returning from the Ball' and 'Twelve Months after Marriage' but the most common example is represented here 'The last in bed to put out the light'. A couple are seen climbing into a covered bed at the foot of which stands a candle in a holder. These candles are usually broken off, most likely because of simple damage over the years but it has been suggested that this was done deliberately for good luck.
Some of the fairing figurines are marked, as here. The impressed number '2851' comes from the first series of figures produced by the Conta factory with numbers ranging from 2850 to 2899. The earlier examples do not have the shield mark found on most of the pieces which indicates an earlier dating here, more towards the middle of the nineteenth century.
Fairings have been collectors' items for many years now and still hold a naif charm which makes them appealing display items, with a history of their own.
Fairing Figurine - The last in bed to put out the light, German, early Twentieth Century
Price: £25The various figures were made in white glazed porcelain with coloured decoration. The compositions were sculptural and often accompanied by an inscription, as here. Many models are known. Two typical examples are 'Returning from the Ball' and 'Twelve Months after Marriage' but the most common example is represented here 'The last in bed to put out the light'. A couple are seen climbing into a covered bed at the foot of which stands a candle in a holder. These candles are usually broken off, most likely because of simple damage over the years but it has been suggested that this was done deliberately for good luck.
Some of the fairing figurines are marked, as here. In comparison with the previous Lot 4, this example has a glazed circular mark which reads 'Made in Germany'. These marks appear on the later productions of the Conta factory and indicate a dating here to shortly before the First World War. This is consistent with the rather 'brassy' looking gilding used which is typical of ceramic production generally post 1900.
It is interesting to compare Lots 4 and 5 and to see how consistent the manufacture was throughout the period. Only the glazed base with its circular mark and the type of gilt decoration separate this example from its earlier companion.
Fairings have been collectors' items for many years now and still hold a naif charm which makes them appealing display items, with a history of their own.
West German Ceramic Vase, Marei, 1970s
Price: £45While not stamped with a maker's mark, vases of this type are attributed to the West German Ceramics factory Marei which produced pieces from 1949 to 2016. Marei was the commonly used abbreviation for the firm's name which was Majolikafabrik Rheinbach Jean Fuss and Sohn. The pieces are distinguished by the use of a reddish clay but this was sometimes more brown or dark brown depending on the suppliers used. Marks are usually impressed into the base although these are often just pattern numbers, as here. Many pieces are unmarked and some are stamped 'MADE IN GERMANY' or 'W.GERMANY'. The pattern number here is '7104'and is found on similar pieces with the same shape but different decoration. This vase was probably made in the 1970s and is typical of the striking designs the firm produced.
East German Ceramic Vase, VEB Haldensleben, 1950s
Price: £35The factory mark, a shallow dish superimposed over the letter 'H' inside a circle, is that of the East German pottery VEB Haldensleben. VEB stands for 'Volkseigener Betrieb', meaning a people-owned enterprise and used in relationship to the state owned workplaces in the GDR. Haldensleben is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany and a ceramics factory was created there in 1945 with the nationalization of the Carstens Uffrecht plant that followed the division of Germany at the end of WWII. Halsdenleben focused primarily on the manufacture of vases. Its output tended to be of superior quality and employed more restrained glazes than those used by its West German counterparts. Upon the reunifucation of Germany in 1990, the factory was returned to its original owners, the Carstens family. The pattern number here is found on other pieces with the same shape but the abstract decoration used is quite individual and evocative of 1950s and early 1960s designs.
Art Pottery Vase with Geometric Motifs, C20th
Price: £45The style of decoration suggests Art Nouveau designs but there are no obvious parallels. Continental manufacture seems likely, perhaps France or Germany.
Art Deco Style Ceramic Jug with Floral Handle, probably 1930s
Price: £35Oriental Style Vase, West German Pottery, late C20th
Price: £55Yellow ground Bursley Ware Dragon Bowl by Frederick Rhead, circa 1920
Price: £55
West German Keramik Jug with drip glaze, second half C20th
Price: £35Pair of Royal Doulton Spill Vases with gilt decoration, 1920s
Price: £180Pair of Ceramic Figures of Swans, probably continental, C20th
Price: £45Doulton and Slaters Patent Jardiniere circa 1890
Price: £750The Doulton factory began production in 1815, first at Vauxhall and later moving to Lambeth. In 1882 it opened an additional factory at Burslem, Stoke on Trent in the centre of the English pottery. Known at first mainly for utilitarian works it began to develop decorative wares more extensively in the 1860s and soon gained a reputation for its distinctive designs. As the mark indicates, this piece was made at the Lambeth factory and the absence of ‘England’ in the Doulton mark, which has the typical design of interlocking ‘D’ at its centre, indicates that it dates to before 1891. The decorative technique, employing impressed designs was known as ‘Chine’ ware and protected by the patent ‘Doulton and Slaters Patent’ which is clearly marked underneath. Pieces of linen, lace, net or other fabrics were pressed onto the unfired soft clay shortly after potting, leaving a corresponding pattern behind. This piece has elaborately modelled lotus strands in addition as well as gilt flower heads, an unusual combination which does not seem to often occur. On the base are found stamped numbers and letters which should indicate the pattern number and artist decorator but it has not been possible to identify these accurately. Dating though is confirmed and this was clearly a deluxe item amongst the range of pieces produced at that time.
Set of 6 small Art Deco style plates by C.T. Altwasser, Silesia, 1920s/1930s
Price: £75
Shelley Harmony Ware Vase glazed in shades of orange, yellow and grey, 1930s
Price: £95Shelley Harmony Ware Drip Glaze Vase, 1930s
Price: £85Shelley Harmony Ware Vase glazed in blue, 1930s
Price: £85Shelley Harmony Ware Drip Glaze Watercress Bowl and Stand, 1930s
Price: £55Rare Ditmar Urbach Art Deco Pitcher, Czech 1930s
Price: £250Pair of Royal Dux Secessionist Style Vases, 1930s
Price: £250
Clarice Cliff Celtic Harvest Centrepiece Bowl, marked, 1930s
Price: £35
Flash Lustre Glaze Futurist Cruet Set 1960s
Price: £20Set of 14 Delft Amsterdam houses on fitted shelf
Price: £80English dripware pottery covered biscuit jar, 1930s
Price: £20Daum pate de verre bowl, Gingko
Price: £750Cylindrical Vase, Herman Kähler, HAK, blue glazed stoneware, 1950s
Price: £250
Art Deco Davidson purple cloud glass bowl on stand 1930s
Price: £35Pair of Alhambrian Ware English Majolica Vases with raised decoration circa 1880
Price: £30Pair of Art Nouveau Style Ceramic Vases decorated in the Japonisme Style, 1930s
Price: £25While Art Nouveau in form and decoration (Japanese inspired designs were very much a feature of the style), these vases probably date to the 1930s when Staffordshire potteries were producing affordable items for interior decoration in a range of imitation styles. Compare the Foley ware vases in this sale, Lot 31. There are no direct parallels for the mark on these vases but the type of ware here is very similar to pieces made by the 'Brentleigh' factory, Stoke on Trent, in the 1930s and a similar date and area of manufacture is the most likely.
Ceramic Model of a Fish, Jema Holland, signed, 1950s/1960s
Price: £30The Jema factory in Holland was started by two brothers, Jelis Mager ( born 1912 in Rotterdam, Netherlands) and his brother Johan Willem Mager (born 1919 also in Rotterdam) both living in Maastricht who took over an existing ceramics factory, founded originally by J.Meussen, in 1942 and traded together in a partnership which was dissolved in 1955 when the firm JEMA KERAMISCH ATELIER N.V. (jema ceramic studio; the first JE standing for Jelis and MA standing for Mager) was created under a new agreement between them. Ceramic products of many types were produced with figurines a speciality and the business continued until 1984 when it became insolvent and closed its doors.
Most of the pieces seem to have been marked, usually with an impressed script as here indicating the factory itself and the model number of the piece. For modest decorative items the quality of the manufacture is of a high standard as can be seen in both the modelling and the glazing of this piece. Their animal figurines were immediately approachable and provided modest but amusing items of decoration.
A Set of Six Blue and White Willow Pattern Coasters English Ironstone 1980s
Price: £30These coasters formed part of their range. The decoration employs the transfer pattern technique developed in England in the mid eighteenth century and a staple of nineteenth century productions. Printed designs were 'transferred' to the ceramic surface allowing the production of extensive services in a matching pattern. The Chinese derived 'Willow Pattern' design seems to have been first used around 1790 and was probably designed by Thomas Minton for Spode. All the versions contain similar elements besides the pagodas and landscape scenes most notably the three figures on a bridge and a pair of flying swallows. In order to promote sales, various stories were invented based on elements of the design. These coasters are an amusing recollection of times past and highly practical in addition.
A Poole Pottery Atlantis Vase by Jenny Haigh, 1970s
Price: £55A Pair of Art Deco Pressed Glass Trophy Form Vases, Davidson, 1930s
Price: £45A Blue Glass Sunburst Design Bowl, probably Sowerby, 1930s/1940s
Price: £45There is a record of the Sowerby Glassworks at Gateshead from as early as 1907. The first productions were of Vitro-Porcelain or "Milk Glass" type pieces. In the 1900s they produced designs from the 'Arts and Crafts' period and in the 1920s began producing another well known range: the iridescent "Carnival Glass." During the 1930s, Sowerby produced several Art Deco glass designs of which the current piece is one. The firm was eventually taken over in 1957, and finally closed in 1972.
A set of three Millefiori Glass Paperweights, possibly Italian Murano, late C20th
Price: £75This set is sold with matching contemporary illuminated stands which enhance the decorative effect considerably and provide a modest light display installation for the home (see illustrations 5 and 6).
A green glass paperweight, Tweedsmuir Glass, Chris Dodds, late C20th
Price: £25It is sold with a matching contemporary illuminated stand which enhance the decorative effect considerably and provides a modest light display installation for the home (see image 6).