Antiques Trade Gazette 13


of fantasy…


The experimental-glazed wares produced at Doulton during the inter-War years are one of the current favourites with collectors. Right: this 8in (20cm) high dragon vase covered in a thick Chang glaze sold for £9800. Above: other Chang-glazed pieces included in Bonhams’ sale crossed a considerable price range. From left to right these are: a 4¼in (11cm) high globular vase, £750; a flared vessel, 6¼in (16cm) high, £2000; a tapered cylindrical vase, 11½in (29cm) high, £5500. All incurred VAT on the hammer prices.


This particular example was also


unusual for having a multi-colour palette rather than the traditional black and gold design, a more complex variant not recorded in Una des Fontaines’ book. Bonhams acknowledged all this with a bullish £20,000-25,000 guide, and on the day it was sold at the lower end of that margin, going to an American buyer who had travelled over especially to view the piece. At £14,000-18,000, expectations were


almost as high for a particularly large 19in (48cm) covered baluster vase decorated with a combination of the Temple on a Rock and Dragon King designs. This went mid-estimate at £17,500, again going to a US buyer. Fairyland buyers are super- sensitive about damage and this piece did have a restored cover, as did another version that the auctioneers sold for £18,000 in 2009. On the basis of these performances, Mark Oliver speculated that a perfect example must be worth around £25,000. Another smaller covered ovoid vase


decorated with Butterfly Women had been entered from Germany and came with the bonus of a £4000-6000 guide. Predictably it made far more. A UK buyer went to £16,000 to


secure this 9in (23cm) piece, painted with its four large fairies around the body, a design hitherto only recorded on trumpet-shaped vases. The sale also featured two 7in (18cm)


high Malfrey pots decorated with the Bubbles pattern. Buyers favoured the version painted in the more standard colourway dominated by oranges, black and red tones, taking it to a double- estimate £14,000. The other version in a more unusual moonlight colourway dominated by violet and a vibrant green tone, carried a higher £8000- 12,000 estimate but also came with the


disadvantage that as an imported item VAT was additionally payable on the hammer price. It went for £13,000, which with the extra premium takes it much nearer the price of its companion. Fairyland lustre wasn’t the sole


contributory factor to the success of the sale. It also had a high overall take-up rate. With just 72 of the 433 lots left unsold, it came out at 83 per cent by volume. Given that the lion’s share of the


content, getting on for two-thirds, came in equal measure from two other factories, Doulton and Moorcroft, each of which provided around 140 lots to the tally, that says something about the wider strength of demand for these decorative ceramics. It also probably reflects the


auctioneers’ market sensitivity when it comes to selecting for these sales. Doulton wares, for example, have been produced for getting on for 150 years and cover a huge range of different products, not all of them fashionable. Demand for the Burslem figures that 20 years ago used to command entire auctions has fallen dramatically and only the prototypes and rare colourways are on the up now. Likewise, while George Tinworth’s quirky rodents or Hannah Barlow’s scarcer animal subjects still have a determined collector base, more standard Lambeth stonewares and faience are harder to shift and need careful estimating. This being the case, Bonhams had clearly got the balance right. Certainly when one looks at the


Doulton high flyers, they fell into the fashionable category of inter-War pieces with experimental glazes. In the auctioneers’ Ceramic Design sales last year there was a noticeable preference for unusual or experimental glaze variations, and especially anything lustred or flambéd. That trend continues. Perhaps the best


example this time around was provided by the catalogue cover lot, a mid 1920s vase by Charles Noke and Harry Nixon decorated with experimental Chang glazes and modelled with a dragon coiled sinuously around the body. It carried a £10,000-12,000 estimate, but in its favour, felt Mark Oliver, was its pristine condition without the usual wear to the


continued on page 14


Far left: a large 13¾in (35cm) Martin Brothers vase painted with grotesque fish, sold for £7000.


Left: this large 15in x 10in (38 x 25cm) Doulton plaque painted by Florence Barlow was pursued to £6500 at Bonhams.


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