New Shape French Jar, c.1805-1820
In the Spode shape book this vase is listed as No. 35, ‘New Shape French Jar’, in nine sizes from 4 to 14 inches. The Spode pattern books, unlike those at the Denby works, do not include the painter’s names. For collectors this anonymity is frustrating. The reason was purely economic, as good artists were all too easily poached by a rival factory. Josiah Spode (1733-1797) was the founder of the English Spode pottery works in 1776 which became synonymous for the quality of its wares. He is credited with the establishment of blue underglaze transfer printing in 1781-1784, and with producing the definitive form of Bone China. When this set of vases were produced, Spode was one of the largest potteries in Stoke-on-Trent, employing around a thousand people and using 22 kilns.
Merton bought this set of three vases, however, he tells us very little about how he acquired his ceramics collection in his autobiography Home and Abroad.
