Pharmacy jars, decorated in blue and plain white delft, were also made at Lambeth; of this latter there are many small jugs and puzzle jugs, and a variety of fancy pieces. We give an illustration of a very interesting Pharmacy Jar with the arms of the Apothecaries' Company, and with motto inscribed. A shield below has the arms of the City of London.
Bristol Delft.—There is no doubt that the delft of Bristol has not yet been thoroughly exploited. Farther removed from the influence of a constant stream of Dutch examples, the potters took some of their designs straight from Oriental models. Richard Frank and Joseph Flower are two potters who had works at Bristol. They are known to have manufactured delft as early as the opening years of the eighteenth century, contemporary with Lambeth, when the industry at this latter place was in full swing, and delft was made at Bristol until the middle of the reign of George III., after which delft was no longer fashionable.
It is not easy to distinguish between the productions of Frank and Flower, nor is it less difficult in some instances to state definitely whether a piece is Bristol, or Liverpool, or Lambeth, and we might add Staffordshire. There is a very interesting delft plate decorated in blue, representing a balloon ascent. In date this is about 1784 and it may be attributed to Bristol or Liverpool (see illustration, [p. 107]).
But as a rule it is held that Bristol delft is bluish in tint, and has a more brilliant and even surface. The ware is decorated with Oriental landscapes, and a considerable number of tiles were made and painted for use as pictures in the fireside in old Bristol houses a century and a half ago. Bowen, John Hope, Michael Edkins, and Thomas Patience are some of the painters who worked at the Frank pottery. There is one subject picture representing Hogarth's March to Finchley, and it was certainly executed more than once as there is one set consisting of forty-two tiles and another of seventy-two tiles of the same subject.
A peculiarity of some of the Bristol delft is the ground of powdered purple or brown with white panels, having a decoration in blue. We illustrate a bowl of this type of ware, which, although not having the white panel, is representative of this class as the fish is on a white ground with outline decorations in blue (see [p. 115]).
Another fine style of decoration is that known as bianco sopra bianco, that is, a pattern of foliage or sprays of flowers enamelled in white upon a dull, greenish-white ground (see illustration, [p. 115]).
BRISTOL DELFT PLATE.
Decorated in blue in middle and bianco sopra bianco around border.
(At Victoria and Albert Museum.)
