We are all familiar with Doulton’s many advertising flasks for alcohol producers including Dewars, but Doulton also produced some magnificent dispensers for plain old water too!
An early filter ca. 1850’s.
Early Lambeth filters were plainly decorated barrel shapes and can be found with simple coats of arms decoration or lettering. These earliest filters used charcoal and sand to filter the water – a very necessary procedure in 19th Century England. In 1869 a new filtration patent filter was introduced by Doulton and even into the 1950’s water filters were being exported around the world.
The manganous carbon filter size 1.
As the popularity of water filters grew in Victorian times, Doulton responded with more elaborately decorated filters by leading artists. Doulton’s first artist George Tinworth provided several designs but most designs found today are simply assistant pieces and often made in Doulton’s Siliconware.
A recent find – a complete Tiworth designed filter.
A coloured Tinworth design.
An elaborate Victorian/early 20th Century design.
A catalogue page ca.1908.