SHELL EDGE OR FEATHER EDGE?

Shell Edge Plates

 Don Carpentier wrote an excellent article titled Do You Know What the Real Name for this Plate Edge Is?  It turns out that what I have been calling feather edge is actually shell edge!  I even own books about feather edge ceramics that are actually shell edge! 

A feather edge plate has a border that resembles a feather.  

Feather

Feather Edge Plate

Close-up of a feather edge

A shell edge plate has a border that resembles the ridges on a shell.
 

Shells

Shell Edge plate

Close-up of shell edge

Shell Edge plate

Close-up of shell edge

Shell Edge plate

Close-up of shell edge

The next time you find a shell edge called a feather edge, please say something!

THE FOX AND THE GRAPES AND AESOP'S FABLES

Last year, I wrote about one of my favorite fables by Aesop, The Dog in the Manger.  This post seemed to resonate with my readers.  Many of us like to have our behaviors summed up in a moral at the end of an animal fable.  Probably a bit less threatening (and cheaper) than the psychiatrist's coach!  Another of my favorite fables is The Fox and the Grapes.

Brownhills Pottery (1872-1896) Aesop's Fables The Fox And The Grapes 6.12 inch child's ABC plate

One hot summer’s day a Fox was strolling through an orchard till he came to a bunch of Grapes just ripening on a vine which had been trained over a lofty branch. “Just the thing to quench my thirst,” quoth he. Drawing back a few paces, he took a run and a jump, and just missed the bunch. Turning round again with a One, Two, Three, he jumped up, but with no greater success. Again and again he tried after the tempting morsel, but at last had to give it up, and walked away with his nose in the air, saying: “I am sure they are sour.”
Moral: It is easy to despise what you cannot get.

The fable was and continues to be a popular teaching tool for young children (and grown ups).  Below see a children's mug with another example of the pattern.

Unknown Maker Fox and Grapes 2.5 inch high child's mug, ca. 1840

In 1830, the Spode factory introduced a dinner service (definitely intended for adults) that depicted many of Aesop's Fables.  Twenty-seven of these patterns can be seen in the Spode Exhibition Online.  Some of the designs were copied from illustrations in an 1814 edition of Aesop's Fables, printed at the Chiswick press for Carpenter and Son, Old Bond Street etc.  The preface and English renditions of the fables are by Samuel Croxall (ca. 1690-1752).  (See the link to Project Gutenberg eBook.)

Spode Aesops (sic) Fables The Fox And The Grapes 6.25 inch plate, ca. 1830

Spode Aesops's Fables Mark/Notice the impressed Spode mark

The Fox And The Grapes source print, 1814

I always think about the fox and his scorn of the grapes he couldn't reach when there is something I can't have: "I would never want to be young again!"  This is probably an example of (for me) "sour grapes."

JOSEPH

If this plate looks familiar, it is because I used it in a blog post I wrote about my father for Father's Day.  His name was Joseph.  Always called Joe or Joey.  My newest grandson was born on Wednesday night, March 12, 2014.  He is named for my father.  I can't think of a lovelier tribute.

As I said in an earlier blog post, Present For My Dear Boy (written in November 2013 to celebrate the birth of my grandson, Liam), children's patterns with names were often intended as gifts for a new baby.  Joseph is my first grandchild who has a name that was popular in the 19th century, so I hope he likes children's patterns!  Here are a few intended for a loved child named Joseph.

Joseph Terrence (for his maternal grandfather Terry) born on March 12, 2014; 9 pounds two ounces, 21 inches

Joseph Rudolph born on June 26, 1917 ( he may have been about four month in this photo)

CRIMEAN WAR AGAIN (Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose)

A 6.6 inch child's plate that celebrates the alliance of Britain and France during the Crimean War.  The three battles in the banner, Alma, Inkerman, and Balaclava were British/French victories.

I often wondered why there were so many transferware patterns that commemorated the Crimean War (for example, there are 25 Crimean patterns in the Transferware Collectors Club Pattern and Source Print Database.)  In the last few weeks, I have learned a lot of Crimean history as well as current events.  An excellent article by David M. Herszenhorn in the N.Y. Times titled Crimea's Bloody Past Is A Key to Its Present helped me understand more clearly the importance of the mid-19th century Crimean War.

Where is Crimea? I have to admit that I wasn't sure where it was.  I did think it was part of Russia or the Ukraine (all four of my grandparents were from the Ukraine and they used the article the when speaking about their homeland). You can see that Crimea and Ukraine in the map above are part of Russia. They are not part of Russia in the map below.  Ownership seems to change often.

The Crimean War (1853-1856) pitted Russia against the alliance of Britain, France and the Ottoman Empire (the Kingdom of Sardinia is somewhere in there too).  It is considered the first modern war.  Nearly a million men were killed, and it  was the first conflict to use photography, the telegraph and newspapers.  I read that the seeds of many of the 20th century wars were sown in the Crimean War.  Twenty-first century wars too.

Map showing Crimea during the Crimea War

Now for some transferware. Below is a jar showing The Landing of the British Army At The Crimea.

John Thomas & Jos Mayer (1842-1855) jar illustrating The Landing Of The British Army At The Crimea (notice the article the is used before Crimea/I have some idea about this.  Your thoughts?

The pot lid below is titled Alma which was one of the first major battles of the Crimean War.  The men were some of the major players (an odd word for warriors): Omar Pasha, an Ottoman general; Lord Raglan, commander of the British forces; Marshal St. Arnaud, commander of the French forces; and the Duke of Cambridge, Prince George, the grandson of George III.

Polychrome pot lid, Alma, by John Thomas & Jos Mayer (1842-1855)/Clockwise from the bottom; Prince George, Lord Raglan, Omar Pasha, and Marshal St. Arnaud

The jar illustrates a scene from the battle of Balaclava, and the plate shows Sebastopol, also spelled Sevastopol, which was the site of a year-long siege.

John Thomas & Jos Mayer (1842-1855) polychrome jar with a scene of the battle of Balaclava. 

F. & R. Pratt (1818-1920) 8.6 inch plate, Sebastopol.  In 1854-55, the city withstood an eleven month siege by French, British, Turkish and Sardinian forces.  The city endured another siege by the Germans during WWII.

Below is a jug that shows two scenes from the Crimean War; Alma and Sebastopol.

Maker Uknown, Alma 7.5 inch jug

Maker Uknown, Sebastopol (other side of the above jug)

As I have mentioned in prior posts, British potters capitalized on popular culture.  Although not transferware, there are many Staffordshire figures that feature Crimean War subjects. 

Turkey England And France/Made to commemorate the Crimean War/Turkish Pasha. Queen Victoria, Napoleon III

 

QUAGGAS AND MAMMOTHS AND TRANSFERWARE

A modern quagga, October 2013

I recently read an article about cloning in the New York Times;  The Mammoth Cometh or Bringing extinct animals back to life is really happening!   It reminded me of my post on April 16, 2013 titled Visit To The Quagga.  You may remember that a quagga is a subspecies of a zebra that was extinct by the end of the 19th century, but was reintroduced this century by selective breeding.

Photo of a quagga in the London Zoo circa 1870

My interest in clonning and selective breeding began with a 19th century child's plate with an image that didn't quite look like a zebra.  It set me off on a quest to discover something about this unusual looking animal.  I had never heard the word quagga before.  I didn't know the animal existed.  You might want to click on these links to learn more about The Quagga Project and about Khumba, the quagga foal seen above.

Child's plate Visit to the Zebra, circa 1840/Looks more like a quagga to me!

SHELTERED PEASANTS AND SOURCE PRINTS

Shelter'd Peasants 10 inch plate by Ralph Hall, ca. 1825

Shelter'd Peasants mark

One of my many favorite patterns is Sheltered Peasants (or Shelter'd Peasants) by Ralph Hall (1822-1849).  (I always wonder why one letter is often replaced by an apostrophe in the 19th century, when it seems to be as much effort as writing the actual letter!)  The charming bucolic scene which includes a couple, a child and sheep is the same throughout the dinner service.  Like many of the early 19th century British patterns, the scene is copied from a source print.  My good friend, Dora, realized she owned it, so she gave it to me!  The engraver is Anthony Cardon (1772-1813) and the artist is Henry Singleton (1766-1839). 

The Shelter'd Peasants source print, 14 inches by 18 inches, ca. 1799

Imagine my surprise when I found a 19th century needlework at the show and sale of the Transferware Collectors Club's annual meeting in New Hampshire in 2010 with the Sheltered Peasants pattern!  It was beautifully worked in silk and wool on a silk scrim and was framed in bird's eye maple. Of course, I bought it.  

Shelter'd Peasants needlework, 18.5 inches by 16.5 inches

CUMULATIVE RHYMES ON CHILDREN'S POTTERY

A cumulative nursery rhyme or poem is when one rhyme builds on another.  It is an excellent teaching tool for children because memory and brain development are aided by numerous verses hooked together by rhymes and repetition.  The House That Jack Built and Who Killed Cock Robin are examples of cumulative rhymes, and both are found on pottery made for the 19th century child.  The House That Jack Built is featured on a series of mugs, each around 2.75 inches high, made by the Ynysmeudwy Pottery (1845-1877) in Wales.  (The bolded text indicates that it is featured on a mug).

This is the house that Jack built
This is the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built. 
This is the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

The History Of The House That Jack Built/ Notice that one side of the mug says The History, the center says Of The House plus a stanza of the rhyme, and the other side says That Jack Built.

This is the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

This is the dog,
That worried the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

This is the cow with the crumpled horn,
That tossed the dog,
That worried the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

This is the maiden all forlorn,
That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,
That tossed the dog,
That worried the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

This is the man all tattered and torn,
That kissed the maiden all forlorn,
That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,
That tossed the dog,
That worried the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

This is the priest all shaven and shorn,
That married the man all tattered and torn,
That kissed the maiden all forlorn,
That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,
That tossed the dog,
That worried the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

This is the cock that crowed in the morn,
That waked the priest all shaven and shorn,
That married the man all tattered and torn,
That kissed the maiden all forlorn,
That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,
That tossed the dog,
That worried the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

This is the farmer sowing his corn,
That kept the cock that crowed in the morn,
That waked the priest all shaven and shorn,
That married the man all tattered and torn,
That kissed the maiden all forlorn,
That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,
That tossed the dog,
That worried the cat,
That killed the rat,
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.

Who Killed Cock Robin is found on a series of 3 inch high mugs which were possibly made by the Ynysmeudwy Pottery. The mugs are titled The Death of Cock Robin. 

Who killed Cock Robin?
I, said the Sparrow,
with my bow and arrow,
I killed Cock Robin.

The Death Of Cock Robin mug, 3 inches by 2.25 inches/ Notice that the first and last verses are found here

The first and last verses of The Death Of Cock Robin

Poor Cock Robin!/ if the photos look familiar, see my post titled  Robin Redbreast

Who saw him die?
I, said the Fly,
with my little eye,
I saw him die.
Who caught his blood?
I, said the Fish,
with my little dish,
I caught his blood.

Who saw him die and Who caught his blood/ I only had a photo of the center of this mug

Who'll make the shroud?
I, said the Beetle,
with my thread and needle,
I'll make the shroud.
Who'll dig his grave?
I, said the Owl,
with my pick and shovel,
I'll dig his grave.
Who'll be the parson?
I, said the Rook,
with my little book,
I'll be the parson.
Who'll be the clerk?
I, said the Lark,
if it's not in the dark,
I'll be the clerk.
Who'll carry the link?

Who'll carry him to the grave is also written Who'll carry the coffin/ Indeed, the Kite is carrying the coffin in the illustration! The mug is 3 inches by 2.75 inches.

Who'll carry him to the grave and Who will carry the link are both on this mug

The Linnet is carrying a link or torch

I, said the Linnet,
I'll fetch it in a minute,
I'll carry the link.
Who'll be chief mourner?
I, said the Dove,
I mourn for my love,
I'll be chief mourner.
Who'll carry the coffin?
I, said the Kite,
if it's not through the night,
I'll carry the coffin.
Who'll bear the pall?
We, said the Wren,
both the cock and the hen,
We'll bear the pall.
Who'll sing a psalm?
I, said the Thrush,
as she sat on a bush,
I'll sing a psalm.
Who'll toll the bell?
I said the Bull,
because I can pull,
I'll toll the bell.
All the birds of the air
fell a-sighing and a-sobbing,
when they heard the bell toll
for poor Cock Robin.

There must be other examples of cumulative rhymes printed on children's mugs and plates.  Perhaps you have seen something bearing images of There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly!  There are also cumulative tales such as The Gingerbread Man and The Gigantic Turnip, but so far I haven't found them on 19th century children's china.