willow pattern pitcher

willow pattern pitcher , 1800–1830

Where object was made: Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom

Material/technique: transferware; earthenware

Dimensions:
Object Height (Height): 10 cm
Object Height (Height): 3 15/16 in

Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial

Accession number: 1928.3158

Not on display

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Exhibition Label: "Circuits of Exchange: The Global Taste for Blue-and-White Ceramics," Mar-2009, Kris Ercums The willow pattern, said to tell the sad story of a pair of star-crossed lovers, was an entirely European design, though one that was strongly influenced in style by design features borrowed from Chinese export porcelains of the eighteenth century. The willow pattern was, in turn, copied by Chinese potters, but with the decoration hand painted rather than transfer-printed. Archive Label 2001: Potters in early 19th-century Staffordshire made objects such as this one in direct imitation of blue-and-white Chinese porcelains, but with less expensive materials. These wares emulate the look of porcelain or a high-fired substance, but they in fact are made of earthenware and hence were affordable.