February 28, 2025
Skylight, 1949 The bespoke stained glass skylight depicts the daily transition of the sun, which is repeated below in the design of the mosaic pool and fountain, and the twelves signs of the zodiac. It is a replica of the original skylight which was destroyed on 7 October 1941, during the Second World War, by […]
February 28, 2025
A Venetian Beauty (1880-1900) Breakspeare was born in Edgebaston, the son of an artist. He trained in Paris and at the Birmingham Government School of Design and was a founding member of the Birmingham Art Circle. He was also one of the ‘Birmingham Boys’, a group of artists from the city that went to Cornwall […]
February 28, 2025
Princess Alexandra, 1872 Alexandra of Denmark (1844-1925) married the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII (1841-1910)) in 1862 and held the title of Princess of Wales until her husband ascended the throne on the death of his mother Queen Victoria in 1901. She was an enormously popular figure; her style of dress and bearing were […]
February 28, 2025
Victoria, Princess Royal (1840-1901), 1858 This bust is likely that of Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter Victoria, Princess Royal (1840-1901). As the eldest child of the British monarch, she was briefly heir presumptive until the birth of her younger brother, the future Edward VII. She was the mother of Wilhelm II, the last German Emperor. She […]
February 28, 2025
Feathered edge dessert plate, c. 1753-1758 Botanical plates were produced at the Chelsea factory from c.1755 inspired by the publications of Philip Miller (1691-1771), curator of the Chelsea Physic Garden. The lively naturalism of the Chelsea botanical plates reflected a broadening public interest in the natural world. Increasing global commerce brought exotic species from the […]
February 28, 2025
Pair of Double handled chocolate cups and covers with matching stands painted with scenes from John Home’s (1722-1808) Scottish drama Douglas (1756) and William Shakespeare’s (1564-1616) Tempest, Act II Scene I, 1824 These ‘outside-decorated’ Chamberlain Chocolate cups and stands illustrate the vogue for amateur china painting. The factory’s record books document a supply of blank […]
February 28, 2025
Octagonal bowl with mother-of-pearl lustre exterior, orange lustre interior with butterflies c.1914-1920 Daisy Makeig-Jones (1881-1945) is best known for her Fairyland Lustre wares, lavishly-decorated pieces which depicted fantastical scenes of her own imagination. Daisy grew up in a middle-class family and was art trained. She was introduced to Major Cecil Wedgwood (1863-1916), director of the […]
February 28, 2025
Pedestal table, 1884 This hand-painted porcelain tabletop depicts the portraits of William Shakespeare’s (1564-1616) heroines within pages of curling paper by the artist Hilda Brodie. The profile portrait in the centre is that of Juliet from Romeo and Juliet (1597). The laughing woman is Anne Page from The Merry Wives of Windsor (1602). Cleopatra from […]
February 28, 2025
Great Argus, c. 1879 The great argus is a large species of pheasant and is common to the jungles of Sumatra, Borneo and the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia. They tend to feed on the forest floor, consuming insects, seeds, fruit and flowers. This species was given its name by zoologist Carl Linnaeus because of […]
February 28, 2025
Walnut grandfather clock, c. late 19th century Lund & Blockley comprised John Alexander Lund and Herbert Blockley who worked at 42 Pall Mall London from 1872-1876 (successors to Viner clockmakers), and had a branch in Bombay, India. They were retailers and manufacturers of house and turret clocks, including for Queen Victoria, between 1875 and 1905. […]