Antique Chess Sets
The Beauty of Chess So often one sees articles on the history of chess and frankly, to a chess collector it is probably the last thing on his/her mind. Certainly the history and provenance of the set and history (in its empirical sense) as it relates to the [...]
Antique Chinese Snuff Bottles
Chinese Snuff BottlesChinese snuff bottles, and the powdered tobacco which they contained, were at the heart of a fashion that had no equivalent in China's long history. Because of the extraordinary variety of styles, techniques and materials found in these small objects, and the exquisite craftsmanship that was lavished [...]
Antique Coalport Porcelain
In Shropshire during the late 18th Century, with the advent of the industrial revolution and the construction of the eastern branch of the Shropshire canal, the time and location was ideal for the founding of a porcelain manufactory. Porcelain was already being made at Caughley only a few [...]
Antique Decanters
Decanting history When was wine first decanted? Did the Greeks and Romans pour their wine from amphora into a smaller vessel to then be served at table? Certainly in this country in the seventeenth century glass vessels for wine were imported from Italy and towards the end of [...]
Antique Bow Porcelain
In December 1744 a patent to cover a recipe proposed for the manufacture of a porcelain body, was taken out by Heylyn and Frye. In 1749 Frye alone issued a further patent. The Bow factory was founded in 1747 by five partners, chief among whom were Edward Heylyn, [...]
Antique Chandeliers
LET THERE BE LIGHTOn dark winter evenings it is not easy to imagine life without electricity, but if we cast our minds back to the grand houses of the past we might visualise the beautiful chandeliers, wall lights and candelabra of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.English glass was first [...]
Antique Chelsea Porcelain
Nicholas Sprimont, silversmith, was primarily responsible for the foundation and success of the Chelsea factory. Sprimont was a second generation Huguenot whose parents came from the Low Countries. He emigrated from the Continent to London and worked as a silversmith. In 1744 he rented premises in Church Lane [...]
Antique Tea Caddies
Tea caddies of the 18th and early 19th centuries not only reflect an important and fascinating social custom, but they demonstrate the best craftsmanship in practically every decorative material and technique of the age. It is probably this, together with their endless variety that makes them so attractive [...]
