RARE Circa 1830 Rare Two Color Yellow Transferware Drainer Platter John Ridgway Villa

$399.99

Brand Nancy's Daily Dish

Here is a Hard to Find Bi Color Yellow and Brown Transferware Drainer by Ridgway in the Villa pattern.

After 1828, technology allowed potters to produce two and three color transfer wares.  This truly stunning example dating to the 1830's, by John Ridgway is a very highly sought after piece in the Villa pattern.  Yellow is the very rarest color of transferware,  and the intricacy in transfer placement on this piece is unsurpassed. 

 

This elaborately scalloped, rectangular serving platter in John Ridgway's "Villa" is executed in brown transfer and the rarest transfer color, yellow.   The "Villa" of the title is the stylish Italianate structure off to the left.  To the right is a decorative footbridge which crosses into an elaborate  garden area, over a stream that leads the eye to a second villa in the distance. The brown transfer printing is highlighted with a yellow wash. An inner border of scallops and rosettes frames the well of the bowl with cartouches in between depicting a songbird.

Truly an exquisite piece even for the most selective of collectors.

Measures 

Condition: Beautiful! No chips or cracks.  Stilt marks, minor glaze pops (common during production of this time period), light discoloration, mostly to the back, crazing.

 

Ridgway Potteries Ltd, was founded sometime around 1744.  Sometimes called the Grandfather of the Potteries, the Ridgway family can be traced to the earliest days of the Staffordshire potteries, along with such famous names as Wedgwood, Spode and Adams.  
 
Under the management of one family member, John Ridgway, the Ridgway potters were appointed as Potter to Her Majesty Queen Victoria.  This was the highest acclaim for any English pottery firm.
 
One of the family members, William Ridgway,  operated the Bell Works in Shelton and the Church Works in nearby Hanley from 1830-54.  The Bell Works Pottery at Bethesda Street  has been The Potteries Museum since 1956 and houses the largest and most important collection of North Staffordshire pottery in the world.

The last photo is an old photo of some 19th Century bottle kilns at the Ridgway factory in Shelton. These were some of the largest kilns in the area.  They were used as air raid shelters during WWII. They were demolished in the 1960's.