Homes Antiques

Inspired by European earthenware English pottery Minton & Co launched a

range of brightly coloured low-temperature lead-glazed pieces at The Great

Exhibition in 1851 as ‘Palissy ware’ which later become known as ‘majolica’.

Other potteries such as George Jones and Wedgwood began to manufacture their

own versions and by the 1880s the name majolica was commonly applied to all

such wares whether made by Minton or not.

‘Majolica vases are very ornate’ says Ben Tulk director of Madelena Antiques

& Collectables. ‘The majority are decorated with Darwin-related naturalistic

designs adorned with flora and fauna such as cockerels peacocks frogs lizards

and flowers but there are a few geometric ones too.’

Prices start at around £10–£20 for a continental unmarked majolica vase

that’s damaged. At the top end an exceptional marked vase of monumental scale

by an English maker such as Minton or Jones could fetch up to £35000. ‘There’s

something to suit every budget so it’s easy to start a collection’ says Tulk. ‘Also

the glazes are enduring so majolica vases can still be used for flowers today.’

For over 100 years Japan isolated itself

from the outside world by all but closing

her frontiers until 1854 and the Treaty

of Yokohama when Japanese trade with

Western nations resumed.

When Japanese pottery (mostly

‘Satsuma’ ware) and porcelain (‘Imari’

‘Kutani’ and ‘Arita’ ware) flooded into

Europe the asymmetry of the designs

took Europeans by surprise.

‘Much of this ceramic flood

resurfaces at the Antiques Roadshow

to general disappointment of owners’

says Lars Tharp. ‘But occasionally

a gem by Makuzu Kozan from the

Fukagawa factory or by Kinkozan and

Yabu Meizan will appear – these names

command four and sometimes five-

figure sums while their mass-produced

(transfer or stencil-printed) relations

struggle to rise into three figures.’

Tharp says that a pair of Imari vases

(with or without lids from 12in to 27in)

could start at £90 and rise to £2000

although this assumes perfect condition

which is rarely the case.

‘Since the catastrophic Kobe

earthquake of 1995 traditional Japanese

works of art from the 17th century to

the early 20th century have slumped

in value excepting those superlative

examples of porcelain metalwork or

ivory carving from the highest – and

very rarest – makers’ reveals Lars.

Once you can tell the dierence

between hand-painted and transfer-

printed and once you know your

porcelain (translucent) from your

earthenware (not translucent) you are

on the right path.

If you group a few together they

can provide an attractive focal point.

‘In an uncluttered white interior a

splash of Imari or Kutani and maybe

even Satsuma will leap out of a cool

background’ says Lars. ‘Rather than

buying a cheap mass-produced vase

dig deeper into your pocket: buy a piece

of real quality something that will

sustain.’ The timeless appeal of this style

will never go out of fashion.

MAJOLICA VASES

JAPANESE VASES

H&A LIFESTYLE: Antiques

H&A SUMMER 2017 41