Even when Doulton was known as Doulton & Watts at the beginning of the 19th Century, advertising items were already being produced in the form of containers with either impressed names of manufacturer, the items they contained or else simply bearing a paper label advertising their contents. These early containers held everything from caviar to ginger beer to ink, and a wide variety of things in between. In the early 20th Century the names of the companies or contents therein would often be simply impressed on the base of the item or else incorporated artistically into the design of the piece. It is recorded that over 100 firms used Doultonstoneware to advertise their whiskey, beer and mineral waters.

Some firms such as Dewars favoured Doulton vessels for such a long period that you can find examples of stoneware and also items produced at Doulton’s factory in Burslem, the heart of the Potteries. Doulton’s famous Kingsware was a perennial favourite of Dewars and Doulton created many individual flasks for them, which today are highly collectable. 

The advertising wares produced by Doulton in Burslem have an equally interesting history and perhaps chart the last chapters in the production of advertising wares as the fashions for such items evolved further. The Edwardian style biscuit casket for Huntley & Palmer from 1905 looks incongruous next to items produced in the 1930’s and 1940’s that have much simpler lines and decoration reflective of this period. 

All industries had items produced by Doulton to advertise themselves from ash trays, to jugs, to match strikers, to wall plaques and a whole host of other advertising items. Perhaps one of the most fiercely fought after fields in advertising wares today are those that Doulton produced for themselves! Once again jugs, vases, ash trays and the like can be tracked down featuring the Doulton emblem as its principal feature. 

The advertising figures produced by Doulton have long captured collectors’ imaginations and famous groups such as the Yardley’s figure is a straight adaptation of the same image featured in their advertising. Other more unusual figures include the Grossmiths’ perfume girl ‘Tsang Ihang’ and ‘Steve’ produced for the road builders Wettern, Beadle & Bristow in the UK in 1923. 

We seem to have written much over the years about Doulton’s Faience wares, so will try not to dwell on what we have already covered.

As many will remember when Faience first began production at Lambeth they didn’t have their own production facilities for the blank ware so Doulton’s other factory in Burslem was tasked with sending down blanks to be decorated and then fired at others’ factories in Lambeth, prior to Doulton swiftly constructing their own kilns capable of firing faience art wares and production facility for the blank ware

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Illustrated is a wonderful faience charger by John H. McLennan, perhaps Doulton’s most famous portrait artist on the faience medium. You will note from the catalogue description by Lion and Unicorn that the blank charger bears a Pinder Bourne mark, which readers will know is the factory in Burslem that Sir Henry Doulton bought into in 1877 before taking it over solely in 1882. It is therefore not surprising given the date of Faience art ware being introduced in 1873, McLennan’s start with the firm in 1877 and the use of a Pinder Bourne blank of 1881 all to marry up within a few years of one another.

McLennan was active between 1877-1910 and his style was heavily influenced by the art nouveau movement. He was a designer and painter of Faience vases, plaques, wall panels and single tiles. His work was presented at many of the great International Exhibitions Doulton exhibited at and his work favoured by Royalty the world over – even the last Russian Tsar had examples of his work.

It will be no surprise that his tile panels exist today and even the legendary Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in London has examples of tile panels by this great artist.

For a similar example of his work see Doulton Lambeth Wares by Eyles and Irvine p.13 from the legendary Billings Collection.

This rare figure is based on the great Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova in her most famous role as the Dying Swan in La Cygne. In the early 20c Pavlova travelled the world popularising classical ballet. Although re-issued after the star’s death in 1931, examples remain extremely hard to find. This particular example is titled The Swan Dance (Pavlova) an interesting alternative to the usual title simply ‘Pavlova’ or the rarer ‘Swan Song’.

Although famed for popularising classical ballet, Pavlova also appeared in music halls as a solo artist, reaching a very wide public at the time. Many of you will have guessed that her popularity reached the southern hemisphere too, where in Australia and New Zealand they created the popular Pavlova desert named after her!

This example will be auctioned by Adam Partridge Auctions at 2pm on Wednesday 10thSeptember at their Macclesfield saleroom, here is a link to the website

https://www.adampartridge.co.uk

The lot description reads:

CHARLES J NOKE FOR ROYAL DOULTON; an exceptionally rare figurine , “The Swan Dance (Pavlova)” HN487 Potted by Doulton & Co, handwritten in black, green Doulton backstamp, with light blue wash over tutu, exceptionally well painted face (21-38) 4 1/4″, impressed date 6.23.

Born in Worcester where he attended art school and was also trained at the famous Worcester Porcelain works, he followed the great Charles J. Noke from there to Doultons shortly after the latter’s move in 1889. Noke, like Raby and that early band of artists, was attracted to Doultons for the artistic freedom and the promise. That promise was the inspiration, the originality, the invigoration, the challenge and the demand as Noke himself put it, from one man…Sir Henry Doulton.

Sir Henry Doulton did for the 19th century pottery world what Wedgwood, Spode and others had done in the 18th century. As one American critic at the 1893 Chicago exhibition put it ‘Doultons have completely outstripped their rivals and are today the leaders in English potting.’

And so we return to Edward Raby. Raby’s pedigree stems back from artistic excellence in his father, a flower modeller at Worcester (Porcelain) and also his grandfather, also a Bristol (Pottery) flower modeller. Raby is famed for the use of a secret ‘Raby mauve’ in his painting and also his exquisite grouping which makes his painting live and glow.

Examples of Raby’s works can be found in the great museums of the world from America to Australia. Illustrated here is an exceptional example of his work coming up at Lion and Unicorn Auctions 24 August 2025.

This model is as inspired by an Edmund Dulac illustration in his Picture Book for the French Red Cross from 1915. Also known as A Chinese Mandarin and The Mikado, he was no doubt popularised by the contemporary musical comedy The Mikado by Gilbert and Sullivan.

Collectors will be interested to see that this particular HN colourway is on a Titanian body, like a small group of other figures from this period, the Titanian body offered a richer base to emphasise the particular decoration used for this colourway. Interestingly the double Spooks figure can also be found with a Titanian body in certain colourways.

Several other important figures can be traced to Dulac’s book including the legendary Princess Badoura and several of the One of the Forty (Thieves) models.

This particularly rare version of A Mandarin is the first HN colourway of him. Modelled by Royal Doulton’s then art director at their Burselm factory, C. J. Noke, he was introduced in 1918 and available to order until around 1936, when the block was destroyed due to not having been used in then recent times, like so many other early model blocks.

The auction for this exceptionally rare model and a selection of other rarities, will take place at 2pm on Wednesday 10thSeptember at Adam Partridge’s Macclesfield saleroom, here is a link to the website

https://auctions.adampartridge.co.uk/auction/search/?au=177

George White 1885-1912

The choice of artist profile for this post, was an easy one given the choice example of White’s work coming up this Sunday at Lion and Unicorn Auctions in Florida.

In today’s world White is regarded as one of the greats from the Burslem studio, moreover the top of his particular field of figure painting. Like another Doulton great, Hannah Barlow, he too was the product of the South Kensington and Lambeth Art Schools. Doulton themselves recognised his talents early on in his career there with his work taking prominence in any exhibit of the time. In the book ‘The Royal Doulton Artists’ Owen attests “In portraiture White attains the happy success of not only ‘catching’ the likeness of his subject but in seizing and expressing personality – the supreme test of the portrait painter.” True praise indeed from 1910 by Owen, but this sentiment was also reflected by Sir Henry Doulton who White painted, along with his brother James and other Burslemartists of the period. 

That other Royal Doulton legend, Charles Noke said of White ‘…not only did he depict the human form divine with beauty, grace and delicacy, but he…. also brought out the individual personalities of his models. 

A cursory glimpse through the Royal Doulton paper archives illustrates the position White was held in, as you see his name next to many important exhibition vases with the words ‘Figures by Mr. White’.

White painted one of the famous Diana vases for the 1893 Chicago Exhibition and also a Dante vase in collaboration with Chares Labarre. In the Doulton Burslem wares book Desmond Eyles notes that a large vase by White titled Titania was made specifically for Prince Rajitsingh. 

The variety of ladies painted by White be they fanciful, allegorical or otherwise remain among the most prized items by collectors today and his work regularly sets the auction world abuzz. White’s ladies clad in diaphanous clothing have retained all of their original appeal and with titles including Sleeping Beauty, The Dance, Orpheus and Eurydice, Cupid and Psyche and Spring Frolic we today adore his work in equal measure to his contemporaries.

Whilst he will always be remembered for his freehand painting, White also contributed designs for more mass production at Burslem and these typically carry a GW number on the base. Other alternate markings indicating some transfer with overpainting by White and these include George A. and also A. Dix was a popular pseudonym of his.

 

The legendary Burslem art director, Charles Noke, had a long fascination with Jesters as seen by any cursory glance through the Royal Doulton ranges of yesteryear – from the later 19c Vellum figures ‘The Jester’ and ‘Mirth and Melancholy’, to character jugs including ‘Touchstone’, to unique art ware pieces such as this Holbein tyg by Noke himself. 

This particular piece is a one-off example by the art director himself and dates to the 1890s. All decorated and painted by hand, I haven’t seen the same shape with this character before.

The character in question is Touchstone, that most famous of court jesters featured in Shakespeare’s ‘As You Like It’. He is a court Jester, used throughout the play to both provide a public voice of reason or challenge, and humour, sometimes vulgar humour, fitting the archetypal Shakespearean fool. 

Around the turn of the 20th Century there were many exciting introduction at Doulton’s Burslem studios, many the brainchildren of the famous Charles Noke. Holbein ware (1895-1915) is a typical example of Noke’s experimentation with glazes and bodies. Holbein wares give the impression of old masters through the use of yellow, green and brown slip on a cream earthenware body. Portraits on these vases were typically by Harry Tittensor and Walter Nunn among others. Incidentally this name of ware was also given to a series of items of art nouveau shape including candlesticks and oil lamp bases. Further Holbein pieces not featuring portraits but rather nocturnal animals including owls also appear. This ware had a special backstamp but it was not always used, creating certain confusion about this particular ware. This ware should not be confused with Rembrandt ware.

Thanks to Lion and Unicorn Auctions for use of the images. This lot is coming up 22 June 2025 @ 17.00. 

One of the star lots next weekend is this early prototype of the figure that would become Belle o‘ the Ball HN1997. 

Modelled by the talented Roy Charles Asplin, this early prototype version was blocked in June 1945, this month marking its 80th birthday!  This prototype is model 1275, whereas the version produced without the man and the Belle in different colours was model 1286, indicating that the original model was swiftly disgraced and swiftly remodelled without the male figure.  Interestingly the produced model of just the ladybug the sofa was not introduced until 1947. 

This delightful model makes perfect sense with the Belle and her suitor paying court to her! One can trace this model not only through a late 1930s blocking book but also the original shape model book. In the latter, one can see that the number 1275 was soon reassigned to one of Peggy Davies‘ small pig models. 

As with all prototypes the modelling is not only crisper but the detail in the painting is exceptional, as these prototypes were painted only by their most established and trusted artists. 

Roy Charles Asplin is perhaps not a name many know in connection with Royal Doulton but he was in fact apprenticed to the company before emigrating to Canada where he lived out his life until 2014. Born in 1925 in Hanley, one of the famous Six Towns that make up Stoke-on-Trent, his years with Royal Doulton set his career path as he continued to model and produce figures as well as character jugs and even statues. His style of Royal Doulton figures is quite different to his contemporaries Leslie Harradine and Peggy Davies, and here is a photograph of him from 1943 at the age of 18 modelling a further prototype duo after the ballet stars Moira Shearer and Alexis Rassine.