1851 Exhibition Bottle - Flow Blue International Collectors Club
Transcription
1851 Exhibition Bottle - Flow Blue International Collectors Club
VOLUME 26, NUMBER 5 OCTOBER-NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2012 Mulberry Prattware 1851 Exhibition Bottle FLOW BLUE INTERNATIONAL COLLECTORS’ CLUB, INC. The FBICC is organized to stimulate, educate, and maintain interest in the collection and study of Flow Blue, Mulberry, and related fields of china, and to promote the exchange of information regarding same between members worldwide. OFFICERS: President - Katrina Franklin (GA) 1st Vice President - Brenda Meyer (MO) 2nd Vice President - Margaret Taylor (IN) Past President - Jerry Taylor (IN) Treasurer - Ray Schomas (IL) Secretary - Bill Wetherton (KY) Membership Chair - Marilyn Holm (MI) Webmaster - Ken Gallagher (MO) Newsletter Editor - Cindy Neff (IN) Legal Advisor/Liaison - Jon Houserman (MI) Education Chair - Helen Swan (KS) Please send all news, notes, articles, photos, and Blueberry Market items to: Editor - CINDY NEFF XXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXX E-mail Address: XXXXXXXX For change of address and membership information, please contact the Membership Chairperson: Marilyn Holm xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx REGIONAL DIRECTORS: Region 1 - Heidi Woolf (PA) Region 2 - Bob Ferriani (IN) Region 3 - Judith Boles (SC) Region 4 - Judy Boyer (CO) Region 5 - John Provine (OK) Region 6 - Charlie Washer (AZ) FBICC Membership P.O. Box 5427 Naperville, IL 60567-5427 Cover photos courtesy of Ellen Hill Table of Contents Blue Berry Notes is the official newsletter of the FBICC. Photographs submitted by members become the property of the FBICC, Inc. and no article, photograph or drawing may be reproduced without the express permission of the FBICC, Inc. Use of photos in BBN does not imply that the item is either Flow Blue or Mulberry. President and Editor Letters .................................... 3 Alcock Revisited .......................................................... 4 Bear Grease to Bloater Paste.................................... 6 A Snug Little Nest....................................................... 8 My Two Cents Worth .............................................. 11 Invitation to White Ironstone Meeting .............. 11 The Rare and Unusual Piece ................................ 12 From the Pattern Identification Desk ................ 14 Pattern Request ........................................................ 14 Reg. 4 News: Stage Coach Stops & Flow Blue 15 It’s Never Too Late for a Gift ............................... 15 Bill Leach Profile ...................................................... 16 A Season of Good Wishes ...................................... 18 Quiz Corner and Guest Quiz Master .................. 19 Blueberry Market ..................................................... 20 Club Bulletin Board ................................................. 22 Condolences - Flikeid ............................................. 22 Holiday Bluetique .................................................... 23 More Paste Jars and Pot Lids ............................... 24 Editor - Cindy Neff Assistant Editors - Agnes Holst , Heidi Woolf and Brenda Meyer DEADLINE FOR THE NEXT ISSUE January 15, 2013 For website items, please contact the webmaster: Ken Gallagher - [email protected] FBICC website: www.flowblue.org 2 FROM THE PRESIDENT Katrina Franklin FROM THE EDITOR Cindy Neff In October, you should have received the FBICC Membership Survey. Those with an email address were sent an email with a link to the survey; the other members received a hard copy. If you haven’t completed the survey and need another one, please email or call Marilyn Holm (contact information on page 2). The board strives to meet the wants and needs of the members, and since the last survey was done in 1996, we need your feedback to determine if we are going in the right direction. We’re anxious to compare the two surveys and will give the results in 2013! Our neighbor has a pool and no trees. We have trees and no pool. While you may be hanging festive garland and decking the halls with evergreen boughs as you read this, I have just come in from an October afternoon of desperation. It is a little known fact that leaves are fatally attracted to pool water. Pool water is the Fort Myers, Florida, or Green Valley, Arizona, of the leaf world. They would rather winter in a scummy mass in my neighbor's pool than anywhere else in the world. The biggest problem? I like autumn leaves. I like the rustle. I like the crunch. I like the slow fall to earth when they finally let go. I can look at them on the lawn all day long and not care one bit. Mostly, I like the color. There have been many surveys compiled by consumer groups and marketing firms about the way people spend money. Many people watch certain items closely (drive out of the way to save a few cents on gas - buy the store brand - go to the warehouse stores) but then go to the mall and “splurge” on a new pair of shoes, jacket, shirt and tie! It’s a way to reward ourselves and, therefore, justified. We all do this, maybe with different things, and we know what our favorite splurge items are. (Maybe that last Flow Blue/Mulberry sugar bowl is one that’s justified in the same way?) The membership to FBICC is one of my basics, and the contribution to the Educational Fund is one of my splurges. There are few things you can buy for $45 and get so much enjoyment, information, and education that lasts the entire year. The FBICEF provides many extras that the club could not afford to “splurge” on but are enjoyed by everyone. Color pictures in BBN, educational supplements, even part of the new Website costs are paid by your contributions to the Educational Fund, which are tax deductible. The color of autumn leaves sends me to the cabinets to free the mulberry, particularly the polychrome pieces. While some like to decorate with mulberry in the spring with pastel pinks and yellows and lavenders, give me a PERUVIAN tall pot on an October day with a little pumpkin nestled at its base and bittersweet twining up the handle for true beauty. By the time you read this, December will be close at hand. Don't judge me harshly if the Christmas things stay in their boxes a while longer and the mulberry lingers a bit. It reminds me of the crisp autumn leaves, and helps me forget the ones still in the neighbor’s pool. May your fleeting autumn and jolly holidays be blessed with good mulberry and good neighbors. FBICC renewal forms are included in the envelope with this issue of BBN. There are new payment options available to make it easier to get it done before it’s forgotten. (I find that works best for me when there’s so much going on at this time of year.) Be generous with your FBICEF contribution so all of us can enjoy spending and sharing our collective “splurges.” 2013 Blue Berry Notes Publication Schedule Issue Jan/Feb March/April May/June/July Aug/Sept Oct/Nov/Dec Deadline January 15th March 15th May 15th August 15th October 15th Happy New Year! Distributed Late Feb. Late April Late June Late Sept. Late Nov. FBICC 2012-2013 Calendar Convention in Columbus, Ohio July 24-28, 2013 3 Samuel Alcock Revisited By Jan Kobach (left) and Helen Swan (right) Please note that the soup tureen does not have a tally mark to help us with our investigation. Tally marks are the personal signs placed on by brush by the painter or team of painters. It is thought that these tally numbers, letters or symbols were used as a payment guide for paying the workers and as a form of quality control. Tally marks are helpful as an identification guide because some potters used them and others did not. Listed below are the potters who used or did not use tally marks. Have you ever worked on a project so long that you thought you knew everything there was to know? Well, we did, and as Agatha Christie’s detective, Hercule Peroit, would say, our “little gray cells” kept on working. Lo and behold, we suddenly found a lot more information. As luck would have it, the BBN editor asked for an update of the new information presented in the 2012 Convention. I think you will find, as we did, there are some new, interesting points worth knowing about Samuel Alcock. Used Tally Marks Alcock - frequently Davenport – occasionally Minton – frequently Ridgway – occasionally Wedgwood – often One of the key points we stressed in both the booklet and the presentation were pattern identification tools helpful in investigating unknown china by Alcock and that of other potters. Believe us; it is not as easy as it looks. For example, examine this polychrome soup tureen. Is it Alcock or not? Your clues are the pattern number of 7838 printed in red and a registration mark of December 4, 1845. So what does this tell us? Well, we know that Alcock printed his pattern numbers in red, both in regular and fraction forms. It is estimated that, by 1839, he was in the 7000s. Oops, that is not a good sign (7838), since this piece was made in 1845. Still it is the right period and the body style could easily be Alcock’s. What do you do next? The first step would be to look up the registration mark in Godden’s book, New Handbook of British Pottery and Porcelain Marks, pictured in this article. We found the mark, December 4, 1845. Surprise! Wrong again. This tureen was made by Ridgway, NOT Alcock! Oh well, here is another piece for our “almost” Alcock collection. Did Not Use Tally Marks Adams – none Bourne – none Spode – rarely Copeland/Garrett – rarely The list above, compiled by Godden, will not tell you who made a particular piece without other information, but by process of elimination, it could tell you who most likely did not make it. One of our most important finds had to do with registration marks. As explained in the Alcock booklet, English potters could register both their designs and patterns in accordance with the Design Copyright Act of 1842 and then the amended act of 1868. To do so, a potter would contact the registers of design, the National Archives which was often called KEW. To register a design, a potter would send a drawing of a new form. A print from a copper plate, certainly more accurate in appearance, was submitted for protection of a new pattern. Once the registration process was completed, potters placed registration marks on their china. From Godden, we know that Samuel Alcock registered thirteen designs and/or patterns. Below are the only three registration marks we have found to date. Unfortunately, there was a great inconsistency among potters registering their designs and patterns: some did many and others few or none. For some reason, 4 Samuel Alcock Revisited registration marks on porcelain were found less often. to do few, if any, polychrome designs. The BATAVIA mark is of the same form as one used by Samuel Alcock. Next to the mark is a tally mark, often used by Samuel Alcock. So who made it? Look at the picture below of this beautiful BATAVIA tea set sent by Mark ArmORIENTAL (S. Alcock) strong and Murray Weisberg. As you can see, the pattern BATAVIA is on the rococo form of the famous Alcock tea set and is marked with the registration date of June 14, 1843. Based upon all the above information, we attribute this pattern to Samuel Alcock. Since publication of the Alcock On to our big find. We owe thanks to the White Ironstone China Association and its helpful member, Ernie Derringer, for this one. As you may recall, the famous rococo tea set in porcelain by Alcock had a registration mark of June 14, 1843. Shown here are pictures of the teapot and creamer submitted to Kew by Samuel Alcock in 1843 to register this most important design. Imagine, this came from the Alcock factory over 150 years ago!! Certainly we were impressed. bookBATAVIA let, we also added another border design to our two former ones. The three border designs are now categorized as Scrolled, Scrolled and Striated, and Patterned Border. The first two border designs are seen on KREMLIN. The Patterned Border, seen on this HYSON platter (right), incorporates a design from the HYSON pattern. This Patterned Border incorporating different designs is the one seen most frequently on Alcock’s patterns. One of the other fabulous discoveries we made had to do with the pattern, BATAVIA. We, along with the Transferware Club, have diligently searched for the maker of this pattern. From time to time, it was believed the pattern was made by John and George Alcock, Ridgway, or Samuel Alcock. Below you will see some clues to aid you in deciding who made this pattern. There are two pictures of the pattern and its marks. The one on the left is a blue transferware plate called NAPIER, also made in flow blue by John and George Alcock. It is the same design as the pattern on the right which is a copy of the polychrome pattern, BATAVIA. Looking at these two patterns, we do not believe that the Alcock brothers made BATAVIA since they appeared When we started this research over one year ago, we had identified 29 Alcock patterns. To date, including those mentioned here, we have now discovered 49 patterns and an additional 7 unknowns. Of the identified patterns, we found 43 in flow blue and 16 in mulberry. Almost one half of the patterns we found have added color. These designs are now in the Pattern Identification Database for you to admire. 5 Bear Grease to Bloater Paste By Ellen Hill and some designs won medals at the Exhibition of 1851. Pot-lids were an early form of marketing using four-color prints to help sell the products contained in the pots. Prior to 1830, similar pot-lids were printed in either blue or black and simply described the content and manufacturer. The printed designs were attractive and first became popular in the 1840s and 1850s. The first products appearing in these pots were mainly cosmetic; bear grease (perfumed) which was used to sleek men’s hair, pomatum or In addition to the pots/lids the colorful designs were used on other items of pottery – jars, bottles (vases), spill vases and tobacco jars; some of which had the mulberry or flow blue marble or seaweed ground or border. The jars were used for slightly more liquid contents than the stuff put-up in pots; fish or meat pastes were common. (Used for sandwiches in England. The nearest American equivalent to fish paste is finely minced tuna fish and the only meat paste I know of is Deviled Ham.) The bottles/vases were filled with liquids such as lobster sauce, herring sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Other items were made with Pratt designs such as tea sets, candlesticks, jugs, cups, etc. – anything other than a pot/lid is called ‘ware’. In the list which follows, pieces belong to Ellen Hill unless otherwise noted. Photographs are on page 7 and page 24. Veritable Graisse d’Ours real bear fat LIDS/POTS 1. Lady, Boy and Mandoline lid/base 2. Strasburg lid/base 3. Peasant Boys lid 4. All-over Marble lid/base Graisse d’Ours du Nord bear grease of the North toilet salve, cold cream and cherry tooth paste. Food products were also included: anchovy paste, chocolate paste, potted meats, shrimp paste and my favorite, bloater paste! (Bloaters are herrings which have been lightly smoked and salted.) The pots/lids were probably sealed with sealing wax and had a paper label stating the contents. WARE/JARS 5. Uncle Tom and Eva jar 6. Passing the Pipe jar 7. All-over Seaweed jar Sapira collection Why would four-color printed lids be of interest to collectors of flow blue and mulberry? Because some of the lids/pots had a background or border of either ‘marble’ or ‘seaweed’ which was transfer printed in mulberry or more rarely in flow blue. These pots/lids were manufactured by T. J. & J. Mayer, F. & R. Pratt, J. Ridgway and others. The lids/pots are usually called Pratt or Prattware and most people collect only the lids as the base of the pot, if not decorated with seaweed or marble, was plain white and was often discarded. Some stores offered a credit on clean returned lids/bases – recycling began early! The lids/pots measured from 3” to 5”, some were registered designs with the usual registration diamond WARE/SPILL VASES 10. The Smokers WARE/BOTTLES (VASES) 8a. Red Bull Inn/ bottle 8b. Skewbald Horse 9a. 1851 Exhibition/ bottle 9b. Brown transfer spill Neff collection mul seaweed Pratt mul/fb marble Mayer mul seaweed Pratt mul marble Unknown mul seaweed Pratt mul seaweed Pratt mul seaweed Unknown mul seaweed Pratt mul seaweed Pratt mul seaweed Pratt WARE/TOBACCO JARS I have never seen a tobacco jar for sale; doubtless they are out there just waiting for you to find! I have seen lids/pots with flow blue seaweed ground/borders both in antique shops and on eBay, but they were very expensive! Most of the material in this article comes from a wonderful book: Pot-Lids and other Coloured Printed Staffordshire Wares by K. V. Mortimer – published by England’s Antique Collectors’ Club in 2003. 6 Bear Grease to Bloater Paste 1 2 4 8a 5 8b 3 7 6 9a 9b 10 Above left, NAPIER (J. & G. Alcock) polychrome paste jar (or very small ginger jar) Above right, larger version in flow blue only Near right, red ground Prattware mug Far right, mulberry polychrome paste pot or powder jar 7 A Snug Little Nest 2 1 3 1. ARGYLE (Grindley) 9, 10, 11.25, 12.75, 15.25, 17, 19, 21 inch platters - Boyer 2. Gaudy Half-Ripe Strawberry (unknown) 5 inch fruit bowl, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 inch plates - Holm 3. CRESCENT (Grindley) 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 inch platters - Washer 4 5 6 4. BOCHARA (James Edwards) 13.75 & 17.75 inch platters with “cookie cutter corners” - Ferriani 5. COREAN (Podmore Walker) 7, 8, 8.75, 9.75, 10.25, 10.75 inch plates - Kamerance 6. RHONE SCENERY (T J & J Mayer) 10.25, 10.5, 16, 18, 20 inch platters - Krainik 7 8 9 7. LONSDALE (Ridgways) 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 15 inch platters - Neff 8. PINWHEEL (unknown) 6, 7, 8, 9 inch Gaudy plates - Holm 9. NON PAREIL (Burgess & Leigh) 7.25, 8, 9.5, 12, 13.75, 15.5, 17.5, 19.5, 22 inch platters - Mead 10 11 12 10. KIRKEE (Meir) 12 inch drainer, 14, 16, 18, 20 inch platters - file photo 11. BOCHARA (J. Edwards) 9 platters in 3 sizes - Castle 12. FORMOSA (T J & J Mayer) 12.25, 12.5, 15.5, 16 inch platters - Preston 8 A Snug Little Nest The Victorian potters created an efficient method for presenting and storing basic dinner service items: the nest. With increments between one and two inches, plates, platters, soup bowls and serving bowls were designed to fit snugly inside one another, giving the appearance of a tidy bird's nest. If you have ever struggled with the Tupperware, Rubbermaid and generic plastic containers that spill from American cabinets, you will appreciate the beauty and compact storage of a simple ironstone nest. SHANGHAI (Grindley) 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 inch platters - Hohl ARGYLE (Grindley) 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 inch plates - Holm CAMBRIDGE (Meakin) 7, 8, 9, 10 inch plates - Holm VINCENNES (Alcock) 10.5, 12, 15.5, 17.5, 20 inch 8-panel platters - Alexander BOCHARA (J. Edwards) 3.75, 4.75, 7.25, 8.5, 9, 10 inch plates - Ferriani BEAUTIES OF CHINA (Mellor Venables) 7.5, 8.25, 9.5 inch plates - Kamerance PORTMAN (Grindley) 7, 8, 9, 10 inch plates - Holm Marble (unknown) four mulberry child’s dinner set platters - Hill DOGWOOD (Minton) four flow blue child’s dinner set platters Sapira Possibly LAZULI (unknown) four flow blue child’s dinner set platters - Sapira CHINESE BELLS (Davenport) three polychrome child’s dinner set platters - Sapira 9 A Snug Little Nest MARCHEL NEIL (Grindley) 8, 8.75, 10 inch oval vegetable bowls - Provine COLONIAL (J & G Meakin) 10.25, 12, 14, 16, 18 inch platters - Padilla Bill Wetherton’s nesting instinct took hold and wouldn’t let go. Above is his stacked Eagle’s Nest of COREAN (Podmore Walker) mulberry 9.75, 7.75, 6.75 inch plates, 6.25, 6 inch saucers, 5.25 inch berry bowl, 3.5 inch cup, and 4.25 inch cup plate. VINCENNES (Alcock) 8, 9.75, 12 inch 12-panel potato bowls Alexander COREAN (Podmore Walker) 9.5, 9.75, 10.25 inch soup bowls - Kamerance VINCENNES (Alcock) 8, 9.5, 10.5 inch 12-panel soup bowls - Alexander MARIGOLD (B & B) 3 platters - file photo MARCHEL NEIL (Grindley) 9, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 inch platters - Provine SHANGHAI (Grindley) 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 inch plates - Hohl NORMANDY (Johnson Bros), left, 6 platters ST. LOUIS (Johnson Bros), right, 3 platters file photo file photo 1 Not a nest or a stack, but a TOWER of 27 BOCHARA (J. Edwards) mulberry cup plates Castle My Two Cents Worth by Ellen G. King Past President and Club Historian With the holidays fast approaching, my mind begins to wander toward things of the past. With the chilly fall evenings and the golden leaves all flying around, our convention of last summer seems long ago instead of just a few months back. As I began to think about this column, it crossed my mind that I wish, for just this issue, that I could call it "unexpected treasures". That is what this last convention gave to me. I know that everyone has heard me say repeatedly, that to get the very best from this club you need to attend an international convention. It is the way to cement friendships that have long ranging after-effects in ways you cannot imagine. Sometimes it is in finding that long lost last piece to a set you cherish and wanted to complete. It can be seeing a true rarity you never knew even existed. This year for me, it was about kindness and sharing and genuine caring friendship - exhibited not once, not twice but three times toward me. In the picture accompanying this article you will see two beautiful little mugs which appeared earlier in an article on German production. The scenes on these little mugs have very special meaning to me and when I remarked on them, they became a gift to me from Cindy and Phil Neff. The wee Scots doll was a loving reminder from Jackie Casey that being of Scottish heritage is a wonderful thing, but having an English friend who understands that is even better. The lovely undertray in the back was a treat from Judy and Kim Boyer. While shopping on their way to convention, they found this Scottish-made piece and bought it as a surprise for me. I am not sure I am deserving of such friends, but I do know if I had not attended club conventions in the past, I would have never met any of these wonderful people. They are my unexpected treasures and I am blessed and grateful for their warmth, smiles and friendships. Thank you Cindy, Phil, Jackie, Judy and Kim, for your generous hearts. Please come to the FBICC convention next year. You will never know what delights wait there for you unless you do, and in the meantime, have a wonderful holiday season from turkey to candy canes. For this time, that is my two cents worth. Invitation to White Ironstone Meeting The White Ironstone China Association invites all members of the Flow Blue International Collectors' Club to the Saturday portion of its May 3, 2013, annual convention held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 2004 Greenspring Drive, Timonium, Maryland. WICA membership hopes you can join us that Saturday to Miranda Goodby hear two lectures by the renowned Miranda Goodby of The Potteries Museum of Stoke, land. Her topics are “Beer Shops and Bread Riots” and “Mason, Etc.” You are also invited for a delicious lunch. Cost for the three events is set at a very reasonable $25. One may send a check to David Klein, Treasurer, 1513 Perry St., Davenport, Iowa 52803, before April 15, 2013. If there are questions please contact Jane Diemer, Program Committee at [email protected] or 302-475-7412. We hope to see you there. 1 The Rare and Unusual Piece By Warren Macy ROYAL LILY well and tree platter I have ever seen or heard of. It had magnificent deep blue color and measured a whopping 21 X 17 inches. We have been doing the Rare and Unusual program long enough now that each year I worry that we will not have as many participants or that the pieces will not be as rare or unusual as those we have come to expect. Each year club members have proved that I worry needlessly. This year was certainly no exception. The R&U just keeps coming! The second piece, while not as large, was just as rare - a wine coaster. Someone in the audience thought it might be a tray for a flower or cache pot, but on this day it held a bottle of wine, so it was a wine coaster! I must admit I was quite disappointed with Charlie Washer and the piece he brought to Springfield this year. Oh, it was rare and unusual enough. Charlie brought an exquisite square flow blue potpourri dating to 1845-55. It was marked Mason’s Patent Ironstone and was in the YEDO pattern. The only questionable thing about it was After a year’s absence it was good to have Louise and Len Mason back at the convention. They are always very willing to bring and share R&U pieces from their wonderful collection. This year they brought a rare, large soup tureen in a SCOTT'S BAR variant. Making it most unusual was the fact that it was a Spanish piece made by Pickman & Co. whether or not the finial was meant to hold a candle. My disappointment centered around the fact that Charlie, knowing full well that Connie and I love and collect potpourris, took it back to Illinois rather than allowing us to add it to our collection in Indiana. The same goes for Bonne and Bob Hohl. They are always willing to bring R&U pieces from their extensive collection. This year they brought an AMOY (Davenport) teapot in a previously Out-going President Jerry and out-going First Lady Margaret Taylor squeezed a couple R&U pieces into their car to bring and share with us common folk. Having amassed every flow blue and polychrome syrup known to man, a full set of CLARENCE (Grindley), a dazzling display of poly and colored-ground pieces, the Taylors seem to have turned to collecting R&U pieces of ROYAL LILY (aka "Bluebell"). They brought the only 1 The Rare and Unusual Piece unseen body style and a rare egg coddling set that featured three egg cups and three matching egg coddlers on a handled tray. Only at our convention can you see such rare and unusual items! that the only two known Warwick heart-shaped lidded bowls would be from a single mold but that obviously was not the case! Marilyn Holm, another reliable regular at the R&U program brought a gorgeous chamberstick in an unidentified pattern. Finally, another reminder about the extended R&U program next year. Our normal R&U event will be followed by a PowerPoint presentation “Living With Rare and Unusual Flow Blue and Mulberry.” Each year I see all of the wonderful R&U pieces you bring to the convention and how they look sitting on a draped table, but I frequently wonder how they look and how they are displayed in your homes. Our “Living with R&U Flow Blue and Mulberry” program will provide the answer. If you attended the convention, you saw a couple of extremely rare Warwick pieces. Several months ago I received an email from Bill Wetherton with a picture of a covered heartshaped dish in the PANSY pattern by Warwick China Co. topped with a small butterfly-shaped finial. He had just bought it on eBay and wanted to know if I had ever seen one and if it was worthy of the R&U program. I replied that it was, indeed, rare and unusual and I had only seen one other - in fact, I was looking at the other one sitting on my desk. A few weeks later we were meeting at the Taylor’s for dinner, so I asked Bill to bring the covered dish along so we could compare them. When Bill got his out I thought it looked larger than mine. We are asking you to take some high quality photos of your R&U pieces in their “natural habitat” as you see them every day and send them to me at xxxxxxxxxxxxxx or mail them to me at xxxxxxxxxxxxx. With the help of Margaret Taylor, we plan to incorporate your pictures into what has the potential to be one of the most interest- ing programs we have had at our convention. However, it will only be as good as your make it by sending your pictures. Now is the time…..go get started! As I was writing this article I just received an email containing the first five pictures for the program. They were from that despicable Charlie Washer showing his precious little potpourri sitting between a pair of flow blue candlesticks on his dining room table! When I unpacked mine and we placed them side by side, Bill’s was obviously at least 50% bigger than mine. (That line was edited by Editor Cindy!) You would think 1 From the Pattern Identification Desk By Helen Swan, Education Committee Chair Have you ever wondered what is on our Pattern Identification Database? I did, and decided to find out. The answer: There is a tremendous amount to make you more knowledgeable about your beloved flow blue and mulberry. As of today, 1685 patterns are listed for your review. Of those patterns, 1376 are flow blue, 350 are mulberry, and 254 have additional color seen in either ground color or polychrome. What surprised me most was the number of listed patterns with additional color. This is likely due to the recent submission of Samuel Alcock pieces who made many of his patterns with color added. New to the database is the ability to find makers by their initials. For example, login to the Members Only section (www.flowblue.org), select Resources and then Pattern Identification Database. Click on the tab marked "Initials" and enter the initials you have found on a piece. It should tell you who the maker is. This category is just being developed and needs your help. If you have a flow blue or mulberry pattern with initials in the backstamp and know the maker, please send this information to me. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxI will happily add it to our current database. Speaking of sending patterns, I would like to thank Eric Brown for his recent contributions which are shown from left to right, SYRIAN (Grindley) and TULIP TREE (Peter Holdcroft). Eric reviewed his collection on the database and found patterns that were not listed. Thankfully, he sent pictures of these patterns and their marks. They are now proudly displayed on the database. If each of you would follow Eric’s lead, it is believed that we could increase our patterns by 900 entries. After all, it takes a village to build a database. Pattern Request By Judy Boyer Since this issue falls during the month of November, which includes Thanksgiving, I wanted to thank everyone who has helped the Pattern Identification Database. This project was a tremendous undertaking for Helen and Jim Swan, and with the help of several members, and all of you who have sent in your patterns, the PID has grown by leaps and bounds. Patterns have been found that we never knew existed, and there are still quite a few patterns that we do know are out there, but do not have pictures for as yet. So keep looking! If you are not sure if we have the pattern, it is easy to get on the website and check it out. All you need to do is log in under your member password and you can access the PID. While you are logged in, check out the other new information that Ken Gallagher, Regional Directors, and others have added. If you have not been on the website in the past few months, you will be in for a pleasant surprise. 1. 2. Two of the newest pattern additions to Pattern ID are (Fig. 1) MEMPHIS (unknown), a polychrome design, and (Fig. 2) a Minton & Boyle polychrome design (pattern name unknown). Does anyone have pieces of flow blue or mulberry in the patterns below? If so, please send a picture to Helen Swan at [email protected]. Needed: ACORN (Furnivals); GAME BIRDS (Adams); GAME BIRDS (Copeland); HARVEST (Minton); HARVEST (Sampson Hancock & Sons); HARVEST (Wilkinson); MAYFLOWER (scenic, unknown maker); PLYMOUTH (Brown-Westhead, Moore) 1 Region 4 News: Stage Coach Stops and Flow Blue By Judy Boyer, Region 4 Director Club member Rosalie Vandewater Ingle published her first book this summer. She grew up in a house that served as a roadhouse/stage stop 100 years before. The stop, outside Orient, Iowa, became the focus for a book that is written for children approximately 4th through 6th grades. But if you are an adult who likes history, this book is also for you. Everything is historically accurate, so the reader can find many pieces of trivia from the past. The main character, Hallie, is fictional, but she represents many young people from the 1800's who left their homes in the East to travel to new locations in the West. Vivid description and whimsical detail in colorful illustrations make the book life-like. Love of flow blue china prompted the author to weave flow blue into the book through pictures and text. "I love flow blue. It is everywhere in my house. What better way to promote my passion than to have it be a part of my children's book?" says Rosalie. Flow blue enthusiasts will enjoy adding this book to their libraries, and it will make a great gift for family and friends. Explore the hidden treasures of the book and follow the questions on a chalkboard as readers are challenged to learn more about their own family history. Books may be purchased for $12.00 (plus $3.00 postage) by contacting Rosalie at [email protected], or they may be purchased at her blog: www.rosalieinglestagejournal.blogspot.com. Looking for a Christmas present for a young relative or friend? The book, along with a flow blue tea cup and saucer, might awaken a new understanding of the past for a child. The book is targeted to children ages 9–11, an age when a child is more responsible for taking care of precious items. Maybe you could have a tea party, or start a small set of flow blue for a child who has seen your collection and has shown an interest in it. Take time to talk to a child about what interests you about your collection. Some of my best memories are of spending time with my grandma and having lunch with her, using her flow blue soup bowls. My sister remembers going to her house after school for tea and cookies: nothing fancy, but a memory was made. Who knows, you may be planting a seed in the mind of a future FBICC member! “A child’s eyes capture the images of so many things. A child’s heart holds those images and so much more for a lifetime. We must keep the spirit of what came before alive by passing those images on to the next generation. Today, yesterday, and tomorrow all blend into what we are, what we were, and what we will be.” - Rosalie Vandewater Ingle It’s Never Too Late for a Gift Editor’s Note: Correspondence from FBICC members is always enjoyed. Lee Hochstetler shared an experience that is fairly unusual. Lee writes: I think I found a new way to use our beautiful dishes. A week ago a man came into our mall here in Goshen, Indiana, and bought a SHANGHAE (Furnivals) c. 1860, soup tureen with under tray and ladle. He said his wife loved the dishes and now she will always have what she always wanted. You see, his wife had just died and he wanted the tureen for her ashes. I am a pastor and have a number of times had committal services in which an urn was buried containing the ashes. I did not find out whether he was going to bury it or set it on his mantel. 1 Bill Leach Profile William H. Grindley, the potter of the pattern GIRONDE, traveled there on vacations. Today, we have 10 place settings of GIRONDE and every conceivable piece they made (we think). In addition, Rebecca likes razor boxes, creamers, and butter pats. I like brush stroke and the Inverted Diamond body shape. We have a few pieces in a pattern reminiscent of VINE BORDER (J M & P Bell), but not identical. In total, we have about 700 cataloged pieces. I started using “Collectify My Stuff” (www.collectify.com) for cataloging our items when it first came out. By Bill Leach Shortly after we moved into our first house in 1976, my aunt, who knew my wife Rebecca liked blue, gave us a blue and white vegetable dish for our newly purchased hutch. As we began to look for other items to fill the hutch, we came across some plates in the same pattern as the vegetable dish. CONWAY, made by both Wood & Sons and New Wharf Pottery, soon became Rebecca’s favorite pattern and we learned from a dealer that this type of dishes was called "flow blue." There was a small antique shop on Rebecca’s way to work and she occasionally stopped to look around and discovered that he sometimes carried this china called flow blue, too. We first heard about the Club when reading an article in our local paper about the Strong Museum in Rochester and its collection of flow blue. At the end of the article there was a reference to the newly formed Flow Blue International Collectors' Club. We made the two hour trip to Rochester from our home, took copious notes of pieces we saw in the collection and bought two Petra Williams books in the Strong Museum bookstore. Later that year, we were in at an antique show and talked to a husband and wife who had flow blue in their booth. Jerry and Judy Peabody were anxious for us to join FBICC, which we did in 1989. I began to get to know club members because I was starting to bid against them at auctions. Dave Crumb, George Genzel, Bob Hohl, and Dennis Noyes were all up in my neck of the woods, unfortunately. Dennis and I became good friends and later we did shows together. I am interested in history and the early china patterns sparked my curiosity. We purchased a 9-inch water pitcher in an unknown flow blue pattern (we couldn’t read the pattern name, as only four letters were visible), and then several months later we were at an auction where 60 pieces of the same pattern were for sale. An antique dealer that we had gotten to know was there and she told us she wouldn’t bid against us, so we were able to get all 60 pieces, sold as one lot, for $125. The set After being part of the club for several years, I worked with Dave Crumb on the 1999 Rochester Convention, as he was cochair but in Yugoslavia for about five months prior to the convention. I also chaired the 2003 Philadelphia convention and the 2009 2003 - Vivian Kromer, Jan Schomas, Bill St. Louis Leach, Ray Schomas convention. Eventually, I wrote a column for Blue Berry Notes entitled “Know Your Pattern.” I wanted to know the origins of the names of flow blue and mulberry patterns, so I searched them out and launched an educational column. I enjoyed doing that research. included two lidded vegetables bowls. Thus started our set of GIRONDE (pronounced je rond) by W. H. Grindley. Studying the name, I discovered that GIRONDE is the name of the river in France which runs through the city of Bordeaux. My belief is that 1 Bill Leach Profile UNKNOWN teapot Inverted Diamond body shape Left, GIRONDE (Grindley) place setting Above, table set for dinner Right, teapot and sugar Wall display of plates and platters in various patterns An aunt’s gift started the journey to a hutch filled with those blue and white dishes. UNKNOWN tea set in the Inverted Diamond body shape. Using a divided wooden drawer to display creamers. 1 A Season of Good Wishes Dan & Haya Sapira Ellen G. King Len & Louise Mason Warren and Connie Macy Joe & Helen Pape John & Brenda Meyer Paul & Judith Boles Ralph Escudero Bob & Nancy Ferriani Kim & Judy Boyer John & Laurel Provine Answer to Quiz Question on Page 19 is... Obama Bluebell States Jan Kobach Charlie & Dorothy Washer (1) 1 Quiz Corner Last Quiz Solution Who is the person and the scene shown on the jug? My answer - Daniel in the Lions' Den Am I right or wrong? George Wells posed this answer - The man is Van Amburgh, an American lion tamer. He is dressed in Roman garb to simulate Daniel and the lions, but actually Daniel would have been naked or in rags. The Romans weren't around yet, but it soothed the Victorian sensibilities to have Van Amburgh dressed as such. By Dan Sapira Correct! The jug shows the famous American lion tamer Isaac A. Van Amburgh and his menagerie of lions. It was probably made in Staffordshire in 1839 to coincide with Van Amburgh's arrival and tour in the UK in that year. Quiz Corner has a new format. In each issue I will show an item, ask a question and give a possible answer. You decide whether I am right or wrong. If the answer is incorrect, send your solution to the editor (contact info on page 2) or to me at [email protected]. December Quiz - What is the use of this item? My answer is: A small handkerchief hanger. Am I right or wrong? What do you think? Guest Quiz Masters are being sought! If you have an idea for a Quiz, send it to the editor or to Dan at [email protected]. In the last issue Guest Quiz Master, Warren Macy asked the question, Besides two rare and unusual pieces of flow blue (1), the picture represents the upcoming presidential election. Who will prevail the Romney Red ground states or the Obama Bluebell states? The answer is on page 18. Guest Quiz Master, Bob Ferriani asks, While on a cruise of the Caribbean earlier this year we came across a tiny museum (and gift shop!) in Antigua. In one of the showcases was a flow blue shard that caught my eye as it was marked as an "18th century piece." We know it's not that old (from the 1700s), but can you identify the pattern, and thus the real date that it was made? Bob doesn’t have the answer, so he is counting on one of you to solve the puzzle! 1 Blueberry Market Wanted: Child's creamer SCINDE by Alcock. Wanted badly enough that I will consider a creamer with damage. Please contact Mary Mikolaitis, Each member may send in three “Wanted” items per issue at no charge. For Sale ads are available at the rate of $5 for one or two items and $10 for three or four items in one issue. Each ad may also include one picture. Make checks payable to FBICC and send to the editor. Wanted: 1. RHONE SCENERY (T.J. & J. Mayer) mulberry. Need bowl to a pitcher & bowl set. 2. PANAMA mulberry. Ladle for a soup tureen. 3. AMOY (Wm. Davenport & Co.) flow blue. Ewer or water pitcher. Call Dick Kropp at. Wanted: Chamber pot GLOIRE DE DIJON (Doulton) Call Marilyn Wanted: All in excellent/very good condition. 1. KEELE with gold by Grindley, 14" and 16" platters, 8.5" water pitcher, soup tureen/ underplate, bone dishes. 2. LORNE - four bone dishes. 3. Johnson Brothers - GEORGIA 8.5 inch water pitcher, and 3 OXFORD bone dishes, with gold. Wanted: Large La Belle jardiniere, pre-1900 syrup pitchers and unusual polychrome pieces. Contact Jerry & Margaret Taylor at Wanted: SHELL by E. Challinor dinner plates and serving pieces. Wanted: A small platter in the WATTEAU pattern by Doulton. Approximately 9" X 7". May be called a Bacon Platter. Contact Judith Boles,. Wanted: CASHMERE ladle for soup tureen. Just reward for same. Contact Lenny Sturmak at Wanted: Any pieces of KIN-SHAN pattern flow blue in excellent condition. Contact Gil Townsend at Wanted: Looking for large dinner plates - 9.5-10 inches in CLIFTON by Grindley that will be used for special occasions. Plates do not have to be in pristine condition. Small chips are acceptable but no hairlines, please. Wanted: 1. TULIP & SPRIG creamer & sugar, Single Line Primary shape 2. Polychrome mug or loving cup 3. REEDS & FLOWERS brushstroke pieces Wanted: Lids for flow blue sugar bowls, PELEW by Challinor & AMOY by Davenport (primary shapes only.) Wanted: 1. MELBOURNE Egg Cups 2. Rare or unusual pieces of WALDORF 3. Rare or unusual pieces of LANCASTER Wanted: 1. Basin for wash set: VIENNA by Johnson Bros. We have the ewer. 2. Lid for a butter dish: PORTMAN by Grindley. Must have gold. 3. Round undertray for chowder pot/soup tureen: COLONIAL by J. & G. Meakin. Wanted: NON PAREIL (Burgess & Leigh) cereal bowls 6 in. dia., egg cups 1-5/8 in. dia. X 2-3/8 in. tall, footed egg/custard cups 4 in. dia. X 2-3/4 in. tall. Wanted: I am searching for flow blue plates in the BROOKLYN pattern by Johnson Bros. I want dinner plates (10 inch), salad or butter plates in the 9 inch, 8 inch or the 7.5 inch sizes. Please contact Judy Handmaker by email at xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx or snail mail at 2 Blueberry Market Wanted: 1. CASSINA (Davenport) child's pieces. 2. AMOY (Davenport) Gothic style creamer. Also an undertray to chestnut basket, underplate for round gravy, rococo style teapot, sugar and creamer. 3. SCINDE (Alcock) liner for 8-sided soap dish, top to master slop jar (dome shape). Wanted: LUGANO teapot, pitchers, soup tureen with undertray and ladle, double salts or any rare pieces. I’m also looking for any double salts in Flow Blue. Contact: JoAnn Woodall, FOR SALE: 1. AMOY (Davenport) platter 10x7.5 in. FOR SALE: NORMANDY (Johnson Bros.) 12 X 16 platter; covered butter; 3 pc sauce, underplate & lid plus generic Johnson Bros ladle; 10” plate; 7” plate. FOR SALE: 1. 37 flow blue butterpats including, GRACE, FAIRY VILLAS, TOURAINE, MARLBOROUGH and 12 butterpats in WAVERLY. 2. 10 inch plates in TOURAINE and TURIN 3. 10.5 inch plates in SCINDE and NING PO 4. Two 9.25 inch flanged soup bowls in NORMANDY 5. 9 inch WALDORF round/open vegetable bowl 6. flow blue handless cups & saucers - 2 in CHAPOO, 2 in THE TEMPLE, 1 in HINDUSTAN Any interest, contact 2. Flow Blue sugar bowl with lid, oriental pat tern, maker unknown, beautiful dark color. 3. AMOY (Davenport) eight 10 in. plates. 4. AMOY (Davenport) 7.25 in. pitcher. For pricing and further description, contact: FOR SALE: 1. SOBRAON (Samuel Alcock) 11" tall pitcher and 12.5" wide wash bowl beautiful dark color. The wash bowl has a small hairline in the back rim that does not go through to the front. $1950.00. 1. 6. FOR SALE: Unique Keepsake Jewelry from Broken China Custom Designed by FOR SALE: Very Rare CHEN-SI (Meir) c.1835, foot bath 13.25" wide X 19" long X 9" high. Very Fine condition and color. This is the actual footbath seen in Petra Williams book Flow Blue China & Mulberry Ware, 1980, Page 86. (I sent her the picture.) $6800.00 Plus shipping. If you have any questions, you can contact 2 Club Bulletin Board 2013 FBICC International Convention in Columbus, Ohio - July 24-28 PHOTO REQUEST: Send photos of your flow blue and mulberry pieces with “make-do” repairs for a funny and nostalgic look at “reduce, reuse, recycle” in an upcoming BBN. Include the pattern name and potter, if known. Also, if you are showing a family piece and know the story behind the “make-do,” please share that, as well. Please email or paper mail photos to the editor. (Contact information on page 2) Calling all flow blue and mulberry lovers! Your help is needed to spread the word about our friendly club and the joy we know from the hunt for our flow blue and mulberry. Whether you are an antique dealer, a member with a booth in an antique mall or a member who just wants to help, we need to get our membership brochures in antique shops, malls and at antique shows. We need YOU! Please contact me to get brochures and/or a holder that can easily be used on a display case or tabletop. To get your brochures, call or email Brenda Meyer Color photos in BBN are provided by your generous contributions to FBICEF. A Table of English Registration Marks is available on: www.flowblue.org Our new club web site is a “visualbased" experience where photos play an important role. To keep the site fresh and drawing visitors (we currently average over a 1,000 visits per month from 30 different countries), large numbers of photos are needed so we always have “something new” for visitors to see. Every club member has a special piece of flow blue, albeit a piece or a collection… and would like to show it off… to literally, the world! This is your chance. Take a digital photo of that special piece and email it to me at [email protected]. The photos will be used in the “Show Me Your Blue” or the “Rare and Unusual” sections of the web site. The photo presentation will be with or without your name, your preference. Please do not edit the photos and make them as large as your camera will allow. The password for the Members Only portion of the club website (www.flowblue.org) was changed in July. It is found on the cover of your 2012 Roster Supplement mailed with the Aug/ Sept BBN. If you have questions contact the Webmaster or your Regional Director. FBICC has a new look to the website. The website contains not only the fabulous Pattern ID Database, but also archived copies of Blue Berry Notes in bright digital color, a Message Board, articles of interest to collectors, convention news and constantly changing photos and information. The web address is easy to remember, www.flowblue.org or www.flowblue.com both take you to the same site. Condolences - Flikeid FBICC members extend their deepest sympathy to wife Colleen, the family and friends of Douglas Flikeid, 73, of Enid, Oklahoma. Doug, a member of Region 5, passed away unexpectedly on October 13, 2012. Doug at his first convention - 2009 2 View all of the wonderful photos in this BBN issue in full color at www.flowblue.org. Holiday Bluetique FBICC educational materials are being offered to flow blue lovers just in time for the holidays. Gift giving has never been so easy! Produced by the FBICC Educational Committee and club experts, these publications will improve pattern identification skills and impart an understanding of the histories and patterns of prominent potters. These books, booklets, and DVDs provide readers in-depth study of special areas of flow blue and mulberry china, while the fabulous cookbooks will appeal to anyone who loves good food served on gorgeous dishes. Prices are listed below. There is an additional $3.00 mailing cost for each item in the United States only. International shipping will be figured on actual mailing costs. Please make checks payable to FBICC. Contact Helen Swan at [email protected] or at the phone number in the club roster for ordering and mailing costs. Flow Blue China: Additional Patterns and New Information by Norma Jean Hoener $15 (+3) Flow Blue and Mulberry: Teapot Body Styles by an FBICC Educational Sub-committee $12 (+3) Samuel Alcock by Jan Kobach & Helen Swan Booklet - $10 (+3) DVD - $10 (+3) The Johnson Bros. - A Dynasty in Clay by William VanBuskirk $7 (+3) Detecting Restorations by Heidi Woolf and the Education Committee $5 (+3) DVD - Personal China of Victorian Men & Women by Ellen Hill & Helen Swan $10 (+3) Cheese Under Blue Cheese keepers are illustrated in color with the recipes. $5 (+3) Booklet - $10 (+3) DVD - $10 (+3) William Harry Grindley and His Flow Blue Dishes and William H. Grindley - Part II by William VanBuskirk Each booklet - $7 (+3) 2 Soups in Blue Soup and sauce tureens highlight the recipes. $5 (+3) Additional Color on Flow Blue or Mulberry China by Ellen Hill, Helen Swan & the Education Sub-Committee The Meigh Potters… by Bonne Hohl $7 (+3) More Paste Jars and Pot Lids BRITISH SCENERY (Davenport) flow blue paste pot Tooth Powder Flow blue pot lid Swinton’s English Primrose Tooth Paste - London Flow blue with polychrome possibly Minton. Marked “BB” for Best Body, c.1846 - face cream jar Veritable Moelle De Boeuf - L.T. Piver, 155Rue St. Martin 155, Paris And 160 Regent Street London - ox marrow pomade - used for hair health Veritable Moelle De Boeuf L.T. Piver 10 Boular De Strasbourg, Paris And Regent Street 160 London ox marrow pomade UNKNOWN possibly early Wedgewood PEARL is impressed on bottom flow blue paste pot Special thanks to Dan & Haya Sapira for sharing their Prattware collection with us. 2 Veritable Moelle De Boeuf De Marson - Chetelat 15 Rue St. Martin, Paris. ox marrow pomade Veritable Moelle De Boeuf ox cream