A rare Caughley sepia landscape jug, circa 1785-90

A rare Caughley jug
circa 1785-90
of cabbage leaf form with mask-spout, Chamberlain's decorated, painted in sepia with an oval riverscape featuring a ruined tower and a church, with scattered 'Daffodil Group Painter' sprigs in blue enamel with gilded flowers to the rest of the body below a patterned gilt border, unmarked,
19cm high

Notes: Caughley are known to have produced a number of different services which featured landscapes painted in underglaze blue, but an enamel sepia scene such as this is very rare. More than likely an imaginary scene, this finely painted picturesque view can be attributed to John Muchall who was the leading landscape artist at Chamberlain's decorating studio at the time.

Literature: See Caughley in Colour Exhibition catalogue, 2005. Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, pgs. 19-20 for a discussion of Muchall’s work.

Condition Report

In a good, original condition with no damages or restorations. There are some slight areas of rubbing/wear to the gilding around the rim, most noticeably to the tip of the spout and a few further small sections to the interior of the upper rim. One branch of the gilded leaves to one side of the jug also has some further loss of the gilding, but not disfiguring. Beyond that, the painting is good and there are no obvious large scratches or areas of wear through the main sepia landscape panel, although there is one very small scratch to the right-hand side of the panel (approximately 0.3mm wide)

The mask-head on the spout has three very small glaze manufacturing flaws. Overall, there are some areas of light speckling of kiln dust/grit. Please see additional images for all of the items above in closer detail.

Bidding indicates acceptance of the condition of the lot.  All lots are sold subject to general wear and tear commensurate with age and handling over time and only obvious faults will be mentioned after a visual inspection. If you have particular specialist questions on any lot, please state these before bidding since we cannot and will not provide a forensic examination of any lot but only a general condition report as a guide only. All condition reports given by Halls Holdings Ltd's representatives or agents are statements of opinion and not fact. If you require any further information about any lots in this auction or about bidding please do not hesitate to contact us again.