Mason's / Masons Ironstone

Now I've discovered this forum I thought I'd try and get a second piece of pottery? ceramic? identified. There is no mark on the base, just plain white glaze, and again, it belonged to my father so I guess circa 50 years old... anyone any ideas what it is? (oh yes, it's about 6.5" high)

this type of transfer printed and enamel coloured chinioserie jug could've been made by any number of Staffordshire potteries of the Mid victorian period - Masons being one of the more prominent and perhaps most likely given the strong iron red colour. I think yours has a nice shape and an almost naive charm - for as you say, the quality isn't fantastic, but i think it's still a very nice thing. The chinoiserie pattern isn't familiar to me and i think possibly quite rare as it doesn't depict any of the usual scenes of oriental figures, parasols, fences, pagodas etc. The chinese dragons are really rather nice.

on closer inspection , they're not dragons at all are they, but Fu/Foo dogs. even more unusual for a western Chinoiserie interpretation.

Thanks bistoboy - I've sent some pics to the museum in Staffs to see if they can help - so will update here once / if I hear anything.

good luck with that! i sent them pics yonks ago to ask for help and never got a reply, let alone any answers. But i'm sure they're very busy people. anyhoo, i did a bit of looking around and found in a book i have on Polychrome enamel chinoiserie the only reference to a transfer printed design with Foo dogs (or perhaps Shi Shi - lion dogs which guarded temples) was a Minton pattern - but it's not the same as yours. So, yes, i think your pattern is fairly rare.

Hey Bistoboy - got a reply from the Potteries Museum - you were 100% correct so well done!




Your jug was indeed made by Mason's. The pattern is known as
Bandana ware and it is a sheet design black-printed and enamelled in red,
yellow, blue, black and orange. We have an example in our collection which dates
from 1830 to 1845 which is marked with a Mason's printed mark. Sheet patterns
were introduced in circa 1830 so this would be the earliest date for your
piece, it is likely to date to a similar time period to ours.


 




The Potteries Museum & Art Gallery

glad i could be of help! i'm a bit more into the pre 1900 stuff myself than 20thc.

Mason’s Ironstone Hydra milk jug with chinoiserie pattern

Nice, likely to be from 1840s.

Cheers :)

Only able to find this piece but it was badly damaged on the handle...

Mark should read 'Mason's Patent Ironstone China' but it's not a very good impression. C.1813-20 i think.

The early handpainted ones are still collectible but the later transfer ones are very much out of fashion

Saw another jug today, wrongly attributed to Japan. Japan was actually part of the pattern name. It had a oval shaped impressed stamp and i could just make out the words "Stone Works", i've not seen that mark before. I would have probably bought it but it had a crack in it.

Masons Ironstone. Handpainted with underglazed blue and over glaze red etc, with gold highlights: ‘vase and rock’ pattern, c.1820