âIn the 1860s lots of European
collectors and interior decorators
went mad for Chinese blue-and-white
porcelain. Feeding this demand
there was an explosion of brand new
wares made in the 17th-century style.
The most famous of these were the
reproductions of sought-after ginger
jars some of which (the genuine ones)
were fetching previously unheard of
sums for ceramicsâ explains Lars
Tharp ceramics and oriental specialist
and Antiques Roadshow expert.
Retailers such as Liberty &
Co imported great quantities of
Chinese porcelain jars at this time
many containing tea or ginger.
Today these small spherical jars
have often been separated from
their dome-shaped covers but makeattractive vases and can be picked up
for £20 each. âLarger ginger jars can
be more expensive and are often found
converted into lampsâ says Tharp.
Oriental blue-and-white vases
intended for a mantelpiece or shelf
were often made in pairs or in sets of
five (so-called garnitures) to appeal to
the European market. A pair of small
Japanese vases made in Arita in the last
quarter of the 19th century can fetch
£80â£120 at auction while a single
vase separated from its pair would
fetch 30 to 40 per cent of its pair value.
In the 1790s Staordshire potters
âinventedâ the willow pattern â a
crowded coming together of decorative
elements seen in Chinese imports of the
17th and 18th centuries. âThe lovely
irony is that as soon as the Chinese saw
examples of English willow pattern
pottery they copied it â a real ricochet
of cross-continental stylesâ
reveals Tharp.
âA blue-and-white Chinese
porcelain vase with a Qianlong
seal mark (dating from
1735â1796) sold last year
at Hansons Derbyshire for
£650000â reveals Tharp.
âThe owners were pleasantly
surprised; they had been using
it as a doorstop.âORIENTAL BLUE-AND-WHITE VASES
Shoot and design coordinator: Rebecca Stead; photographerâs assistant: Savvas Zinonos; stylistâs assistant: Sarah Prall; with thanks to Lars Tharp tharp.co.uk
H&A LIFESTYLE: Antiques