The Magic of Majolica Endures

The late Joan Stacke Graham was perhaps the world’s foremost authority on majolica, the colorful ceramic pieces popular with Victorian collectors. Along with her friend Marilyn Karmason, Graham started collecting majolica in the 1980s. Together, the pair amassed a collection comprising over 2,000 pieces and co-wrote a comprehensive look at the ceramics, 1989’s Majolica: A […]

Oyster Plates on the Full and Half Shell

It’s hard not to fall in love with 19th-century oyster plates, even if you aren’t a fan of eating oysters. Oyster plates emerged during the Victorian era when raw oysters on the half shell became a delicacy, and a proper Victorian dinner service had a special plate or utensil for every type of food. The […]

Porcelain Dinnerware Sets Holiday Mood 

November is a time of family dinners and celebrations. Sets of formal porcelain dinnerware haven’t been in demand recently, but auction prices show that collectors will still pay top dollar for good porcelain. A recent auction at Stair Galleries in New York offered classic antique and vintage porcelain tableware. Lots included partial dinner services, bowls, […]

Nature-Inspired Majolica Pottery

Majolica pottery made in the mid- to late-19th century by the George Jones factory in England is particularly popular with collectors. George Jones is one of the most important majolica designers, creating detailed pitchers, urns and pedestals among his many pieces. Other makers, including Minton, made other items than majolica, while Jones only made majolica. […]

Minton Prawn Plate

Q: I have four Minton plates that appear to be made in the mid to late 1800s. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find anything like them on the web. They are molded prawn plates. Can you help identify when they were made and/or what they may be worth? Also, are there records of who may have first purchased them? I’m in Western Australia in the Peel Region and bought them with other old plates from a garage sale held by two elderly local ladies.

 

A: Minton china was made in the Staffordshire region of England beginning in 1796. This crown on top of a globe mark was used from about 1873 to 1912. The word “England” was added in 1891, so your plates were made sometime between 1891 and 1912. There isn’t any way to trace who originally bought the plates or how they came to Western Australia. Your plate looks similar to an oyster plate. Oyster plates sell for over $100.

Minton

Thomas Minton, after working for other potters, started his own firm in Stoke-on-Trent in 1793. The family business made a wide variety of tablewares and decorative pieces. By 1846 it was making Parian ware, and later it made majolica, tiles, bone china, and art pottery. From 1873 to about 1912, the name on the mark […]

Minton Dinnerware

Q: In the 1930-1950 period, would Minton dinnerware normally be found in middle class or upper middle class homes? Where might it have fit in the dinnerware hierarchy, compared to Royal Doulton, Spode, or Wedgwood?

A: Minton dinnerware was owned by royalty, the wealthy, and the upper middle class. In some homes, it was the ”good” china used only on special occasions. Minton was made in the Staffordshire region of England beginning in 1796. It became part of the Royal Doulton Tableware Group in 1968. The brand is now part of WWRD Holdings. Minton china is no longer made.

 

Majolica Pottery

Majolica may be an unfamiliar name but the famous pottery has a “look” that is easy to recognize. The heavy pottery has a colorful thick glaze that is easily chipped. Most of the 19th and 20th century pieces of majolica were made in molds. Three dimensional or raised decorations were favored. Many of the majolica […]