Lady archers and gentleman sportsman...I hear you yawn. Yes, there are too many dreary, damaged, or over-restored examples looking for homes, so the mere mention of a pearlware figure of this sort does not send the blood racing. But unusual fine examples or rare models always get me to sit up and take notice, and I am not ashamed to have a few on my shelves.

Among the less common portrayals is this pair, which I attribute to the Patriotic Group. I think they are rather lovely, definitely NOT boring.

Did you know that the same figures occur on a single base, as below? Do not expect to come across these soon. I know of only two examples.

Do I attribute the together-forever archer and sportsman to the Patriotic Group pot bank? No, I definitely would not.  There is not a single feature that establishes an attribution. The figures are from the same molds as the single Patriotic Group figures at the top of this article, but there are many instances where different pot banks used the same molds.

So who made the together-forever archer and sportsman? I don't know, but I think they were made by the same pot bank that made the unique dandies pair below. You can see the similarities in the bocages, bases, and painting. Also, I have examined all these figures and the glazes and enamels are very closely similar.

Ironically, dandies most typically stand together on ONE base, but here they stand on two. Ah well, this potter marched to his own tune.

We have come across a few other instances of pearlware figures found on one base that normally occur separately. As a reminder, here they are.

Several potters made figures of old age, but the group below is the only example I have seen with both figure together forever on one base.

The  together-forever group below is also unique. The little boy portrays the Parable of the Lost Sheep and he is found on his own, attributed to the Leather Leaf pot bank. (Staffordshire Figures 1780-1840, Vol. 2, fig. 97.18). The girl portrays the Parable of the Lost Coin, and I have not seen this model before. Also, I have not otherwise seen the Lost Sheep and Lost Coin on one base.

Lastly, the shepherd and shepherdess below are otherwise always found as two separate figures. The very pot bank that made this group also made these figures separately ((Staffordshire Figures 1780-1840, Vol. 1, figs. 27.99, 27.100). 

Last month, I wrote about the perils of selling pottery at auction. Buy carefully, but please also sell carefully. Auction houses are generalists, and very many of them know not what they are doing when it comes to pottery.

Last week, I viewed an auction of a largish collection that included some high ticket pearlware figure groups. The figures were lumped in random lots. Pottery was mixed with porcelain, not-very-old figures were mixed in with early ones, and pairs were split across lots. For some reason, one little figure of not very much value had a lot to itself.  Ahead of the auction, this single item had several bids--whereas the desirable lots had none yet.  Who wants to buy three expensive figures just to get the one they want? Who has the money to buy two expensive lots to make up a pair? I fear that all these lovely items may not get the respect (and price) they deserve at auction. 

This week, a pearlware figure of the lion Nero is coming up at auction in the UK. Incorrectly described as "circa 1900," it has a pre-sale estimate of £50-100. This illustrious beast once stood in the stock of John Howard. It certainly was not made circa 1900--more likely it was made circa 1825-1830. A low pre-sale estimate doesn't necessarily translate into a low final price, but couple it with "circa 1900" and you just never know.  Again, seller beware!

We know that figures of the lion Nero were made from circa 1825. In that year, Nero rocketed to national fame when the menagerist George Wombwell baited Nero as well as the lion Wallace in two contests on the same evening. These two famous "lion fights" were met with public indignation, and they fueled passage of the first animal protection legislation in 1835.

Figures of Nero and Wallace were made to pair. In Staffordshire Figures 1780-1840, Volume 3, you can see models of each, titled, and with bocages. I have seen a few single example of these bocage lions, but I have not yet seen a bocage pair. In my collection, I do have a pair with the most fantastic faces--but sadly their bocages are lost. 

I bought this pair very many years ago, and they have given me much pleasure, despite being bocage-less. Such powerful figures. Better to look at them this way than to have to live with restored bocage that detracts--and I would buy these lions again in a heartbeat, although they were not inexpensive!

How do we know that the lustre lion coming up at auction is probably intended to be Nero? We reach this conclusion because of this lion, which appears to be from the same molds. 

Conveniently, this example is titled NERO. The color palette and the base itself tell us that this figure was made in Scotland, again circa 1825-1830.

What happened to Wallace and Nero on that steamy July night when they had to fight for their lives against six of England's fiercest fighting dogs? Nero, who was as tame as a kitten, was reduced to submission in minutes. Wallace, however, was a mean-spirited beast and he quickly finished off his aggressors without suffering a scratch. The story is told in People, Passions, Pastimes, and Pleasures. Please don't tell me that you can't bear to look at figures that touch on the subject of baiting. To turn your head pretending that we are now so very different is to deny man's very nature. Legislation and societal pressure may have put a lid on man's basic impulses, but beneath our civilized veneer, we collectively are, sadly, unchanged.

Today, there are so few surprises left. Remember those bygone days when we waited a whole week to watch a sequel episode of a TV show?  Or when we waited many months to be surprised by a baby's gender? Or when figure collectors waited a whole YEAR for Jonathan Horne's annual Exhibition catalog, hoping to find a special surprise among the few figures it featured?  But today John Howard's stock continually surprises with its excellence and rarity. John has the finest stock of early figures ever offered for sale....and when I go onto his site, I just never know what surprise awaits. I try to avoid always writing about John's big-ticket figures....but sometimes I just can't help myself.  The magnificent pearlware bear baiting group that popped onto the site this week not only surprised me. It has reduced me to shock and awe.

This group is akin to a snapshot. It freezes a moment in time. I know of only one other similar example, and it sold at the McCormick sale in NY in 2001. A stunning thing it was too. The bear's expression was haunting, and the look on the little man's face as he thudded to earth after flying through the air is comic. This group is a historical record and a fantastic piece of pottery all rolled into one...with a splash of humor added! The McCormick group (see People, Passions, Pastimes, and Pleasures, p127) has always been on my list of the Top Ten Figure Groups of All Time--and clearly John's group joins it. I do hope it goes to a good home.

Another gem on John's site that I have been trying NOT to write about is this pearlware figure of Admiral Rodney-- I do remember that many of you prefer me to focus on more ordinary figures.  But this figure of Lord Rodney is, I believe, unique. I do wish John had bought it before my Schiffer volumes were published! Unfortunately, it only came to market recently, so I was not able to get it to the publisher in time. 

Lest you doubt that the figure is indeed Lord Rodney, you have but to look inside.

The figure was almost certainly modeled by Pierre Stephan, the famous free-lance modeler who is best remembered for his work for Derby. Two earthenware figures with his mark (both are military figures) are documented (see chapters 67 and 76 of Staffordshire Figures 1780-1840, Vol. 2; also see this blog entry).

I am perplexed by the fame of Lord Rodney in his time (1718-1792). In fact, this naval officer's  fame continued long after his death, as evidenced by this figure, which was made in the early 1800s.  Rodney lined his pockets and apparently put self-interest ahead of his duty, and Wikipedia describes him as "vain, selfish and unscrupulous."

Today and in his time, Rodney was harshly condemned for his actions in capturing the Caribbean island of St. Eustatius from the Dutch in 1781. He tarried on the island too long, plundering its wealth for his own personal benefit. In the process he harshly persecuted and expelled its thriving Jewish community, and he was condemned in Parliament for his avarice and anti-Semitic vindictiveness. Unfortunately, Rodney, like so many modern-day politicians, survived this condemnation to fight another day, and his name has gone down in history, albeit not unblemished!  The first name "Rodney" was first used as a given name in honor of Lord Rodney. When next you meet someone with that name, I suggest you NOT share this factoid!

I have long admired this glorious classical pearlware figure on the Fitzwilliam Museum's web site. The figure is tall, a good 13 inches. The book in her hand has "OVID VOL 4" on the spine, which leads us to conclude that the figure portrays Calliope, the muse of epic poetry. 

Alongside, you see a statue of Calliope, made in 2nd century Rome in imitation of an earlier Greek statue, so you now know how the Ancients imagined Calliope looked.

For many years, the Fitzwilliam's beautiful Calliope was the only one I had ever seen, and then I found her look-alike in the Hunt Collection. The Hunt Calliope, however, was one of a pair, as you see below.

Calliope, on the right, again has an inscription on the spine of the book she holds, but this time it reads OVID Vol 5.  As for her companion, I have no idea who she is, but logic dictates that she is one of the other muses.

Aren't the Hunt figures just gorgeous? The silver lustre on their garments and the lovely soft green are just too pretty. Silver lustering was introduced commercially from 1805, so the figures can't have been made before 1805, but I would be surprised if they were made any later than 1810. The soft greens don't appear to contain chromium (which was only added to green after 1805), but there is no way to know for certain without testing---and I expect green-without-chromium continued in use for a few more years.


If you know who the other muse in the Hunt Collection might be, please share!