A jaw-dropping addition to John Howard's stock is this large pearlware spill vase with two deer on its base.
At 10" high and 15" wide, this group has quite a footprint. Because of the size, such large groups can look deadly dull--unless the enamels are brightly beautiful. John's figure glows. Unlike most I have seen, this one makes the grade with ease. I love that the spill holder has little bits of vegetation on it and that the bocage is pretty-pretty. The whole thing comes together with charm, and that's how I like my pottery. The teeny shepherd-piper is dwarfed by the large deer, adding to the daftness that is Staffordshire.
You will find a similarly formed group in my book, People, Passions, Pastimes, and Pleasures: Staffordshire Figures 1810-1835. That group was photographed from the collection of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK.
A word of caution. I have seen double-deer spills made in such a way that the deer can be lifted off the base. In other words, each deer was potted separately from the rest of the figure form and then put into position at the end of the manufacturing process. This makes perfect sense, if you think about it. This large group was vulnerable in the kiln and if a deer was damaged, you lost the whole thing. But if you made the deer separately, you could replace a damaged deer with a perfect example.
You will find a similarly formed group in my book, People, Passions, Pastimes, and Pleasures: Staffordshire Figures 1810-1835. That group was photographed from the collection of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK.
A word of caution. I have seen double-deer spills made in such a way that the deer can be lifted off the base. In other words, each deer was potted separately from the rest of the figure form and then put into position at the end of the manufacturing process. This makes perfect sense, if you think about it. This large group was vulnerable in the kiln and if a deer was damaged, you lost the whole thing. But if you made the deer separately, you could replace a damaged deer with a perfect example.
In this pearlware group, the deer have been made separately and can be removed from the base with ease.
In figures made thus, today you can still replace one deer with another! I have seen spillholders devoid of deer. WIth a little patience, two deer can be found to fill those empty recesses....and I have seen this happen too. So watch out for this fatal flaw if you are ever tempted by a group with removable deer. Meanwhile, if you want to buy yourself the perfect holiday gift, John's deer have no such problems and are in remarkably fine condition.
