This is a stunning pair of campana vases made by Derby in about 1815, which was the Regency era. The vases have a very rare shape without handles, and are decorated with a typical Regency pattern of polychrome sprigs and gilt details.
The Derby factory, later reshaped into Royal Crown Derby, is currently the oldest British porcelain factory still in production. Derby was one of the most prominent potteries right from the start of English porcelain production in the mid 1700s to today. Their items are of exceptionally high quality and many of the designs have become iconic, particularly the Imari designs; many of these are still being made today. Derby made many exciting designs in the Regency era, and these vases are beautiful examples. The marking at the bottom indicates that the vases were produced some time between 1806 and 1825, most likely around 1815 when the company was called "Bloor Derby".
These vases are in the well-known "campana" shape, but what is highly unusual is that they do not have handles. The decoration consists of a rather wild pattern of polychrome sprigs and swirls in a Regency style, with rich gilding. They have nicely gilded pearled rims, and square feet with gilt acanthus details.
The vases are marked with the red crowned and crossed Derby mark that was used between 1806 and 1825. The style points to about 1815.
CONDITION REPORT The vases are in excellent condition without any visible damage. Under UV light you can see that there is a professional and completely invisible superficial repair to the rim of one of the vases. There is some very light flaking off the enamels, as visible in the pictures. Both vases leak as the screws are not water tight, so they cannot be used for fresh flowers without an internal water container.
Antique British porcelain is never perfect. Kilns were fired on coal in the 1800s, and this meant that china from that period can have some firing specks from flying particles. British makers were also known for their experimentation, and sometimes this resulted in technically imperfect results. Due to the shrinkage in the kiln, items can have small firing lines or develop crazing over time, which should not be seen as damage but as an imperfection of the maker's recipes, probably unknown at the time of making. Items have often been used for many years and can have normal signs of wear, and gilt can have signs of slight disintegration even if never handled. I will reflect any damage, repairs, obvious stress marks, crazing or heavy wear in the item description but some minor scratches, nicks, stains and gilt disintegration can be normal for vintage items and need to be taken into account.
There is widespread confusion on the internet about the difference between chips and nicks, or hairlines and cracks. I will reflect any damage as truthfully as I can, i.e. a nick is a tiny bit of damage smaller than 1mm and a chip is something you can easily see with the eye; a glazing line is a break in the glazing only; hairline is extremely tight and/or superficial and not picked up by the finger; and a crack is obvious both to the eye and the finger. Etcetera - I try to be as accurate as I can and please feel free to ask questions or request more detailed pictures!
DIMENSIONS 20cm (7.9") high and 14.5cm (5.75") diameter.
Pair of Bloor Derby campana vases, polychrome Regency pattern, ca 1815
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