Antiques Trade Gazette 13


Return to splendour – a rare opportunity


The Mort and Moira Lesser Collection of English enamels


There is a long history of collecting English enamels. These brightly coloured floral, animal and figure-decorated boxes and trinkets for sweets, snuff, patches, scent and condiments, produced in such numbers in Staffordshire, London and Birmingham in the 18th century, were first collected in quantity by that inveterate ceramics enthusiast Lady Charlotte Schreiber. It was a tradition notably continued by the Hon Mrs Nellie Ionides, who explored similar territory. Many others have followed. In the ’80s and ’90s these pieces had a keen following, with enthusiasts on both sides of the Atlantic. With plenty of dealers to supply them and regular sales of this material in the London rooms as part of a thriving repertoire of objects of vertu, it was a strong area of the antiques market and the rarest and quirkiest examples could command substantial prices. Among the enthusiasts for these


charming creations were Mort and Moira Lesser, who started collecting in the 1980s. They bought from a range of British dealers but notably Lady Kathleen Hudson, John Jaffa, Simon Spero, Halcyon Days and the Goulds, as well as Mannheim and James Robinson in New York, and they were regular buyers in Sotheby’s auctions and at their annual visits to London’s Grosvenor House Antiques Fair. Over the course of their purchasing


forays they built up a collection taking in all the main producing areas and the many different types of decoration. There are containers for all the categories cited above, plus sewing accessories, tea, a selection of enamel candlesticks, rare vases and wine labels. Decoration ranges from the simple floral patterns to more sophisticated rococo landscapes, quirky animal forms, pieces with political or historical scenes and even boxes with erotic subjects hidden within their covers. The result is a well-chosen and pretty comprehensive assemblage that has not been subject to the over-restoration that can befall some enamelwork. Now the Lessers have decided to


consign all the fruits of their 40 years of collecting to the market courtesy of a 200-lot auction at Bonhams on October 19. The auctioneers reckon it is the best collection of its type to come onto the market for decades. Since their heyday of collectability


20-odd years ago, English enamels have become less fashionable, with new buyers thinner on the ground. The


Above: one of the most popular


classes of English enamels are the novelty boxes shaped as animals. They have an obvious charm and quirkiness and a broad appeal. There are around 40 examples in the Lesser sale variously formed as birds, frogs, dogs, lions and leopards. Pictured here is one of the highlights of the Lesser menagerie, a large double snuffbox/bonbonnière from Birmingham or South Staffordshire c.1765 modelled as a crouching lion with a ferocious expression. One side is hinged to reveal a leopard-hunting scene, the other a standing leopard. The box, which measures just over 4¼in (11cm) in length, with some cracks and restoration, is guided at £3000-4000.


Right: etuis are another class of small container frequently made in enamel and the Lesser collection boasts around half a dozen examples, all with their implements. This 3½in (9cm) high Birmingham or South Staffordshire gilt-metal mounted version of c.1760- 65 is a typical offering. Decorated with classical/allegorical cartouches set on a bianco-sopra-bianco ground, and fitted with scissors, bodkins and a penknife, it is guided at £600-800.


result is that while the rarest pieces still command substantial sums, prices have readjusted for much of the rest. With the wealth of different pieces on offer here, the Lesser collection therefore has something for all purses: choice rarities


Above: this charming South Staffordshire scent bottle is a part of a small group of deeply moulded examples, modelled as a hunting trophy of three ducks with yellow ribbons round their necks. Standing just over 3½in (9cm) high, and with some restoration, it was sold at Phillips in June 1997 for £3800. This time around it is offered with a lower guide of £1200-1400.


Left: vases and cassoulettes are amongst the rarest forms made in enamel. Hard to track down, even back in the 1970s and '80s one could expect to pay out £5000 plus to secure them. It is evidence of the Lessers’ persistence that they managed to acquire three pairs: a pair of white ground urn- shaped vases decorated with landscapes and two pairs of cassoulettes; a green ground pair painted with rustic landscapes and this 11in (28cm) high pair of c.1775 set on square plinths that are guided at £4000-6000.


Above: because wine labels in all materials are a specific collecting category, the Lesser examples have a crossover appeal and have held their value better than some other areas of the enamel market. This is particularly true of the most desirable labels, those produced in Battersea in the mid 18th century that were engraved by Simon Ravenet. There are half a dozen in the Lesser sale, two of them pictured here. That on the left, a label for Cape decorated with a boy feeding grapes to a tiger, is guided at £4000-6000, while the example on the right, painted with Cupid pulling back a curtain to reveal the sleeping Venus, is titled Burgundy and is guided at £3500-4500.


Above: a typical Birmingham snuffbox of c.1760-70 decorated with a sportsman and his lady with flowers to the sides and a butterfly to the base. With lid cracks, it is estimated at £450-600.


Above: three South Staffordshire patch boxes c.1800, around 1½-2in (4-5cm) wide and each with some cracks and/or restoration. One box painted with a man drinking wine is inscribed The Friend of Humanity. Another has a boy playing battledore and shuttlecock, while the third features reversible portraits of a man and woman titled One month before marriage and One month after marriage. The estimate is £900-1200 for the three.


for dealers and seasoned collectors looking to fill gaps in their collections through to pieces for entry-level buyers. And because this is more of a buyer’s


market, it could be an opportune moment to get a foot on the collecting


ladder, with plenty of choice at an affordable limit. Pictured here is a taste of the selection


that Bonhams will offer. www.bonhams.com


Anne Crane


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