Name: Herculaneum Porcelain Vase, Purple, Flowers Lion Head Handles Regency circa 1820
Brand: Herculaneum Pottery
Rating: 5 (44 reviews)

About the Item

This is a beautiful campana vase made by Herculaneum in circa 1820. The Herculaneum pottery was based in Liverpool and operated between 1793 and 1841. It produced very high quality and well designed creamware, pearlware and in the 19th century also porcelain. The pottery relied on an excellent workforce imported from Staffordshire, which explains how it was able to produce top quality items in a relatively short period. The name of the factory was inspired by the recent excavations in Pompeii and Herculaneum, and the pottery obviously competed with the newly opened "Etruria" kiln owned by Wedgwood. These campana vases were used for flowers, or simply as a decorative object by itself; often they used to come in a series of variously shaped vases and ewers called a "garniture". This vase has an underglaze cobalt blue ground and lavish gilt patterns, as was the fashion in that era. The front panel is painted with an exceptionally beautiful flower bouquet in unusual colors; deep purple is the ground for the panel and the flowers are painted with real skill. The vase has two handles each with two moulded lion heads. The vase is unmarked, as was often the case with items of this period. Condition report: The vase is in excellent antique condition with no damage, crazing or repairs. The gilt on the handles and rims is worn in places, as can be seen on the pictures; please study them carefully. The gilt patterns and the flower painting on the body of the vase are free from wear. If desired it is possible to get the gilding touched up for a small fee; however it will never be exactly the same shade of gilt and therefore we judged that the vase is more beautiful in its original state. Antique British porcelain is never perfect. Kilns were fired on coal in the 1800s and early 1900s, and this meant that china from that period can have some firing specks from flying particles. British makers were also known for their experimentation, and sometimes this resulted in technically imperfect results. Due to the shrinkage in the kiln, items can have small firing lines or develop crazing over time, which should not be seen as damage but as an imperfection of the maker's recipes, probably unknown at the time of making. Items have often been used for many years and can have normal signs of wear, and gilt can have signs of slight disintegration even if never handled. I will reflect any damage, repairs, obvious stress marks, crazing or heavy wear in the item description but some minor scratches, nicks, stains and gilt disintegration can be normal for vintage items and need to be taken into account. There is widespread confusion on the internet about the difference between chips and nicks, or hairlines and cracks. I will reflect any damage as truthfully as I can, i.e. a nick is a tiny bit of damage smaller than 1mm and a chip is something you can easily see with the eye; a glazing line is a break in the glazing only; hairline is extremely tight and/or superficial and not picked up by the finger; and a crack is obvious both to the eye and the finger. Dimensions: height 14.5cm (5 3/4"); width 12.2cm (4 7/8") at widest point.

Creator:
Herculaneum Pottery (Maker)
Dimensions:
Height: 5.75 in (14.61 cm)Diameter: 4.8 in (12.2 cm)
Style:
Regency (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Porcelain,Enameled
Place of Origin:
England
Period:
1820-1829
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1820
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. Without any damage or repairs, but some rubbing to gilt.
Seller Location:
London, GB
Reference Number:
Seller: A-HER031stDibs: LU4805115285631