. The legacy which the Bloors and some of the modern successors left to the name of Derby is not a very happy one. The tampering with the marks, or the bartering of modern as old, or the disposal of damaged stock, all go to lessen the faith of the public. As the years go on, the china buyer becomes more discerning, and is not that blind monster which manufacturers too often imagine him to be.
In the hurried sketch we have given of the decline of Old Derby we have little to say of the wonderful biscuit ware which was one of the secrets of Derby, which secret has now been lost. The biscuit figures produced in the best days of Derby are unsurpassed for fineness of modelling and beauty of finish. It was in experimenting to find how Derby produced this biscuit that Copeland discovered his celebrated Parian ware.
There is a peculiar pleasure to the lover of things old and things true in the unravelling of the complicated chain which environs an old factory such as Derby. The lives and ambitions of men, fathers, sons, and grandsons, are bound up with the traditions of the firm. Then trade had somewhat the air about it of the old mediæval guilds. There were secrets which no money could buy. All this lies on the china shelf for you to read, if you care to. Perhaps when your erring maid drops your Derby cup and saucer you will philosophically remember that it is not a cup and saucer, but only as the autumn leaves that are strewn on the grave of Duesbury, the potter—just a symbol to remind you that man’s creations, after all, turn to dust and ashes. But all that is very mournful, and mayhap one shall find you later busy with fish-glue and brush, at which pastime you will need to be a philosopher too.
Characteristics of Old Derby China.
With a history such as that of Derby, general characteristics cannot be laid down, but certain typical patterns were made at Derby. A favourite pattern was the “French sprig” or “Chantilly,” technically termed “129 sprig” at the Derby works, being an imitation of the Angoulême china, painted with a forget-me-not or small blue cornflower, and a gold sprig laid on the white. This is of frequent occurrence on fluted cups. Deep blue borders with gold leafage and simple festoons in pink was a characteristic decoration of early Crown Derby. The “Japan” patterns of Derby during the last years of the eighteenth century and early years of the nineteenth, were profusely decorated with blue and red, and often richly gilded.
OLD DERBY CUP AND SAUCER.
Japan pattern.
