How do you date a Staffordshire pottery?

Staffordshire Pottery Figures – In a nutshell

The broadest use of the term would include all earthenware figures made circa 1740 to 1960. The period we cover in our modest introduction to these fascinating objects is from 1780 onwards. The main groups are: Circa 1780-1840 Pratt Ware figures.

Is Staffordshire pottery still made?

Royal Stafford today is an industry leader in the manufacturing of English cream-coloured earthenware, a traditional Staffordshire product. We are one of only a handful of potteries where all production still takes place in England.

Are all Staffordshire figurines marked?

Staffordshire figures are a type of popular pottery figurine made in England from the 18th century onward. Most Staffordshire figures made from 1740 to 1900 were produced by small potteries and makers’ marks are generally absent.

What do numbers mean on bottom of pottery?

There are marks that indicate a specific mold called a mold number. These numbers often look like dates such as 1953 or 1789. It is rare that a piece of pottery will have a date stamped or embossed into its base. If a number looks like a date or a year, it is most likely a mold number.

What is Staffordshire pottery called?

Staffordshire ware, lead-glazed earthenware and unglazed or salt-glazed stoneware made in Staffordshire, England, from the 17th century onward.

What is Crown Staffordshire?

In the late 1920’s Crown Staffordshire pioneered the large scale production of china floral ornaments and china costume jewellery for which they became famous. Both before and during World War II the company produced badged ware for the canteens of the armed forces, including the British and Canadian navy.

What is fine bone china?

High quality fine bone china contains at least 30% bone ash, enabling thin, walled pieces to be made with a more delicate appearance and translucency compared to porcelain, and allowing for greater chip resistance and durability. Fine bone china is thinner and lighter in weight than porcelain.

Is Aynsley china still made in England?

Aynsley was one of the last remaining “potteries” to carry on with production. However high costs and declining sales brought management to close this historic plant in 2014. The company is no longer active but one of its old plants, owned by Beleek Pottery, is still in production.

What is the most valuable English china?

Blue Willow is arguably the most collectible – but it’s also one of the most widely produced. Even today, companies are creating Blue Willow patterned china. The rare, original, and very old Blue Willow china pieces are the most collectible and the most valuable, if you can get your hands on them.

What is my Aynsley China worth?

A lightly hand-enhanced teacup and saucer duo signed Jones can bring between $30 and $60, while heavily hand-painted examples can easily bring several hundred dollars.

Does tea taste better in bone china?

If there is a thick rim, as you might find on a cheaper kind of mug, by the time the tea gets over this rim, much of the flavour will have dissipated. No matter how you make your tea (to some extent at least), it will always taste better in a bone china cup.

Can you pour boiling water into bone china?

Fine bone china must never be subjected to extreme changes in temperature or exposed to a naked flame. Never pour boiling water into a cold piece of fine bone china.

Is my bone china worth anything?

The most valuable bone china pieces can be worth thousands of dollars. Usually, these items are rare and in excellent condition. For example, a single Shelley Lincoln teacup with a lily of the valley on it sold for about $1,200.

Is bone china really made from bones?

Bone china is made from china clay, china stone and bone ash (made from animal bones). To create bone china, either china clay, china stone, bone ash, or a combination of the three is combined with porcelain clay and fired at a slightly lower temperature than porcelain.

Do vegans use bone china?

Bone china is not vegan since one of its unique features is the inclusion of bone ash during manufacture. Its uses animal bones that have been discarded at slaughterhouses, specifically cow bones. Bone china pieces must contain at least 25% bone ash, but frequently much more close to 40% to 50%.

Is bone china cruel?

Along with the meat industry, the bone china industry is just as responsible for animals being killed for their parts. There is nothing ethical about acquiring bone china and it hasn’t been for a long time. On rare occasion, human bone ash has been found in fine china.

Which is better porcelain or bone china?

Bone china is usually thinner and the glaze is smoother than porcelain china. The glaze, however, is not as durable as porcelain china since it is softer. “Bone china” starts the same way as porcelain china but includes an extra ingredient, bone ash.