INDUSTRIES 



there will from henceforward be constantly open, 

 and that new Productions are daily produced, and 

 brought into the Sale-Room. And the Publick 

 may be assured, that no Pains will be spared to 

 extend this manufacture to as great a Variety as 

 possible, either for Use or Ornament. Note, the 

 Quality and Gentry may be assured, that I am 

 not concern'd in any Shape whatsoever with the 

 Goods expos'd to Sale in St. James's Street, called 

 the Chelsea China Warehouse. N. Sprimont. 



An advertisement in reply to the above is 

 in the General Advertiser of 29 January 

 1750 (old style) : 



Chelsea China Warehouse. Seeing it frequently 

 advertised, that the Proprietor of Chelsea Porcelaine 

 is not concerned in any shape whatsoever in the 

 Goods exposed to Sale in St. James's-street, called 

 The Chelsea China Warehouse, in common justice 

 to N. Sprimont (who signed the Advertisement) as 

 well as myself, I think it incumbent, publickly to 

 declare to the Nobility, Gentry, &c., that my 

 China Warehouse is not supply'd by any other 

 Person than Mr. Charles Gouyn, late Proprietor 

 and Chief Manager of the Chelsea-House, who 

 continues to supply me with the most curious 

 Goods of that Manufacture, as well useful as orna- 

 mental, and which I dispose of at very reasonable 

 Rates. S. Stables, Chelsea China Warehouse, St. 

 James's-street, Jan. i/th, 1750. 



From these two advertisements, which 

 comprise the earliest information obtainable 

 respecting the proprietors, it appears that the 

 business was shortly before 1750 in the hands 

 of Charles Gouyn. It then passed to Nicholas 

 Sprimont, but Gouyn set up a rival warehouse 

 in St. James's Street, Chelsea, which does not 

 seem to have lasted long, as no further men- 

 tion of it has been found. The names of 

 both proprietors declare their foreign origin,' 

 but Nicholas Sprimont had long lived in 

 London as a silversmith, residing in Compton 

 Street, Soho. His name was entered at Gold- 

 smiths' Hall on 25 January 1742, when he 

 duly registered his mark, which was NS in 

 italics with a star above. His silver work is 

 chiefly remarkable for its representation in 

 relief of coral, rockwork, crawfish, and reptiles. 

 Among the earliest specimens of Chelsea ware 

 are the crawfish salts in the British Museum, 

 which are undoubtedly the work of Sprimont. 

 Chaffers quotes 6 a statement from a workman 

 named Mason who was employed at Chelsea 

 and whose son worked many years at the Wor- 



4 Prof. Church regards both names as Flemish, 

 but M. Rouquet, who lived in England thirty years 

 and must therefore have known Sprimont, speaks of 

 him as a clever French artist who supervised the 

 works, whilst a wealthy personage undertook the 

 expense; Uitatdts arts en Angleterrc, Paris (1755), 



43- 

 6 Marks and Monograms (1900), 913-14. 



cester manufactory. The statement is to the 

 effect that he joined the factory about the year 

 1751, and that it was first started by the Duke 

 of Cumberland and Sir Everard Faulkner, the 

 sole management being entrusted to a foreigner 

 named Sprimont. He proceeds : ' I think Sir 

 Everard died about 1755,' much reduced in 

 circumstances, when Mr. Sprimont became 

 sole proprietor, and having amassed a fortune 

 he travelled about England, and the manu- 

 factory was shut up about two years ; for he 

 neither would let it or carry it on himself.' 

 After working at Bow for a short time Mason 

 returned to Chelsea, where he remained till 

 the works were purchased by Duesbury, with 

 whom he went to Derby 'about the year 

 1763.' The story has some additional support, 

 and there is a further link to connect the 

 Duke of Cumberland with the undertaking, 

 in the beautifully-modelled bust of him which 

 was produced at the works ; the bust is of 

 plain white glazed porcelain, and represents 

 the duke bareheaded with a cuirass on his 

 breast. Alexander Stephens, a reputable 

 writer and resident at Chelsea, where he died 

 in 1821, speaks 8 of the Duke of Cumberland 

 and Sir R. Faulkner as patrons of Chelsea 

 china. He adds that the ware ' was a long 

 time in such repute as to be sold by auction, 

 and as a set was purchased as soon as baked, 

 dealers were surrounding the door for that 

 purpose.' The same writer tells us, on the 

 authority of a foreman of the Chelsea factory 

 who had become an inmate of St. Luke's 

 workhouse, that Dr. Johnson thought he 

 could improve the manufacture of china, and 

 obtained permission to bake specimens of his 

 manufacture in the Chelsea ovens. ' He was 

 accordingly accustomed to go down with his 

 housekeeper about twice a week, and staid the 

 whole day, she carrying a basket of provisions 

 along with her. The doctor. . . had free access 

 to the oven and superintended the whole 

 process, but completely failed, both as to com- 

 position and baking, for his materials always 

 yielded to the intensity of the heat, while 

 those of the company came out of the furnace 

 perfect and complete.' 



The site of the factory has been located at 

 the west side of the river end of Lawrence 

 Street." Faulkner says 10 it was at the corner 



Sir Everard Faulkner died at Bath in November 

 1758, and his Chelsea porcelain, which included 

 several ' of the most admired productions of that 

 manufactory,' was sold by auction in the Haymarket 

 in February 1759. 



" ' Stephensiana,' no. i, Monthly Mag. (1821), 

 Hi, 231. 



* Church, Engl. Porcelain (1904), 19. 



10 Hist, of Chelsea ( 1 8 2 9), i, 2 7 z. 



