Celtic pottery (Newlyn & Mousehole)

Thanks again. If the family decide not to keep I'll have to find it a worthy home.

Picked up this lovely piece yesterday at the Norfolk fayre. Not signed but easily identified as Bill and Maggie Fisher. I am wondering if this is an earlier piece it is glazed very nicely in almost a lustre glaze and it is a lot thinner and lighter than other pieces I have come accross.

yes it is an early piece and the glazes were far better then

Many thanks Dan much appreciated.

dantheman wrote:

I also couldn't resist buying this magnificent Bill Fisher bull today

I noticed a bull selling on ebay today and it has a 64  mark on one foot, this made me think it was a date mark

Listed in category:
Collectables>Animal Collectables>Farm & Countryside Animals>Cattle

It just proves how completely Bonkers the new Ebay categories are. It is very difficult to know what to put anywhere!

X4 TILES

strange that I have never seen one in the flesh, I would love to put a few on a bathroom wall

Sacrilege Dan, no one ever tiles with them they are bits of Art just for contemplation, or perhaps standing a tea pot on

For the records a photo of my monitor - went last year for a bullseye each. From the date on my tiles these date to the early 70s, I'm assuming they were not a good seller so not many about.

I would, of course, frame them before hanging them in my bathroom

An 8 inch Tray with bull design.

My latest King

I did spot him, he had a nick but supa reasonable price. Not seen one before

Cats Cats Cats
Bought them together rather other day.
Is there a reason why middle one has no flat base. Is it just different moulding?

For me it's just how they decided to trim out of the mould. If you watch this video then you will see him doing it to a small cat. I'm assuming it was the same plaster mould techniques at Celtic?

It's also white earthenware. I wonder if it's suited to casting. There are also some interesting bits like I did not know they stick bits back on!

Thanks Crawford, it’s really good to see how moulded pieces are made on a small scale. I never knew you had to pour the liquid slip out so pieces are hollow. I get the process so much more now.

And I can see how the trimming part works and maybe how that could change the base of the cats.

Bill Fisher mask

Bill fisher figurine

He does have a very distinctive style

One of the best I've seen in a long time.

22 Crawford St. wrote:For me it's just how they decided to trim out of the mould. If you watch this video then you will see him doing it to a small cat. I'm assuming it was the same plaster mould techniques at Celtic?

It's also white earthenware. I wonder if it's suited to casting. There are also some interesting bits like I did not know they stick bits back on!

I've been thinking whether to respond to this with my thoughts and as no one else has, I will.
Good to see actual slip moulding in progress. I did see it in action at the Cobridge Stoneware open days, but that was a long time ago.

I do not believe that this explains the lack of a base on many Celtic cats and bulls. You'll notice in this clip he is 'only' clearing out the filling hole, so it's sharp. He's not actually cutting off the base and his cat still has a flat base.

But there are other reasons.
All the early Mousehole Cats and Bulls, have an open base. Most of the later Newlyn Cats and Bulls have the flat base with a hole (as in that clip). I have seen a few open based cats with a Newlyn label, but these could be very early change over or even old stock.

For the Bulls, there are some very subtle changes in shape and sharpness of features with most of the open based examples I have - which suggests a different mould to the 'closed' base ones. Also, I heard from one of Bills Sons that the very early ones were Press Moulded - which would require an open based mould.

With the Cats the earliest ones which have the more abstract black designs are slightly smaller in all proportions and all have an open base. I have one with the regular Celtic Pottery style on an open based cat, but this again is very slightly smaller. Most of the Newlyn open based cats with the regular Celtic designs are basically the same as the closed ones although I believe these Newlyn open based cats to be far less in number than the closed base ones. So I suspect they are either early in the Newlyn production or I guess they may have occasionally 'messed up' a base and so trimmed it down a little??
I don't think I've ever seen a Mousehole label on a closed base.

Another difference I've noticed is that the open based cats (that I have) are all glazed on the inside, whilst the 'closed' base ones aren't - why would they have done this differently depending on how they finished the base?
The bulls are a little different on this, as my 'closed base' bulls do seem to have a very thin and patchy covering of glaze on the inside.

As we know, when Celtic Pottery moved to Newlyn and Ev joined Maggie, he introduced a different glaze type/process. So perhaps a change in Mould type was also introduced?

For my money, the different bases are on the whole a sign of different production periods.
However, if anyone has an early Mousehole cat with this closed base, please do show.

A Mousehole period Dish, Signed by Bill.
I think it's a very early one - the white is very thin/pale and allows other colour to show through it.
There is virtually nothing left of the label and no surface to give any indication of what it once said.