﻿May, 
  1907 
  

  

  AMERICAN 
  HOMES 
  AND 
  GARDENS 
  

  

  r 
  93 
  

  

  LOWESTOFT 
  ARMORIAL 
  CHINA 
  

  

  By 
  N. 
  HUDSON 
  MOORE. 
  

  

  Lowestoft 
  China 
  with 
  Blue 
  and 
  Gold 
  Decoration 
  

  

  HERE 
  are 
  few 
  chapters 
  in 
  the 
  history 
  of 
  

   pottery 
  and 
  porcelain 
  more 
  interesting 
  than 
  

   that 
  which 
  deals 
  with 
  the 
  ware 
  once 
  known 
  

   as 
  Lowestoft. 
  It 
  is 
  safe 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  no 
  one 
  

   subject 
  of 
  interest 
  to 
  collectors 
  has 
  ever 
  

   produced 
  such 
  acrimonious 
  discussion, 
  nor 
  

   caused 
  such 
  lengthy 
  disputes. 
  The 
  misty 
  character 
  of 
  the 
  

   information 
  at 
  hand 
  caused 
  a 
  glamour 
  to 
  surround 
  this 
  ware, 
  

   which 
  is 
  pretty 
  enough 
  in 
  itself 
  to 
  make 
  it 
  popular, 
  and 
  

   which, 
  under 
  the 
  title 
  of 
  "Armorial 
  China," 
  is 
  having 
  quite 
  

   a 
  revived 
  vogue. 
  This 
  present 
  interest 
  is 
  derived 
  from 
  a 
  

   new 
  source, 
  but 
  of 
  that 
  later; 
  the 
  early 
  history 
  should 
  have 
  

   the 
  precedence. 
  

  

  In 
  and 
  near 
  Boston, 
  at 
  Salem 
  and 
  the 
  surrounding 
  towns, 
  

   and 
  up 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Connecticut, 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  fifty 
  

   years 
  the 
  "best 
  china" 
  of 
  notable 
  housekeepers 
  was 
  of 
  a 
  

   bluish 
  gray, 
  hard 
  paste, 
  with 
  a 
  pitted 
  glaze 
  and 
  uneven 
  sur- 
  

   face 
  quite 
  Oriental 
  in 
  character, 
  though 
  the 
  decoration 
  was 
  

   of 
  an 
  English 
  type. 
  What 
  our 
  great 
  grandmothers 
  called 
  

   this 
  china 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  heard 
  — 
  "Best 
  Chaney," 
  most 
  likely, 
  

  

  Bowls 
  and 
  Tea-Caddy 
  

  

  or 
  "sprigged 
  pattern" 
  for 
  some 
  styles 
  of 
  it, 
  for 
  the 
  various 
  

   patterns 
  can 
  be 
  classed 
  under 
  three 
  heads: 
  first, 
  that 
  having 
  

   armorial 
  devices 
  in 
  one 
  or 
  more 
  colors; 
  second, 
  that 
  having 
  

   bunches 
  of 
  flowers 
  in 
  bright 
  colors, 
  with 
  borders 
  of 
  lines, 
  

   dots, 
  or 
  bands; 
  and, 
  third, 
  that 
  which 
  has 
  bands 
  of 
  dark 
  

   blue 
  with 
  stars, 
  dots, 
  or 
  small 
  patterns 
  in 
  gold 
  upon 
  them. 
  

   It 
  is 
  only 
  within 
  recent 
  years 
  that 
  the 
  name 
  "Lowestoft" 
  

   has 
  been 
  applied 
  to 
  this 
  china, 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  theory 
  was 
  

   built 
  up 
  by 
  Mr. 
  William 
  Chaffers, 
  the 
  gifted 
  author 
  of 
  

   "Marks 
  and 
  Monograms," 
  who 
  took 
  this 
  style 
  of 
  china 
  

   under 
  his 
  particular 
  protection. 
  For 
  nearly 
  fifty 
  years 
  his 
  

   cleverly 
  woven 
  patch-work 
  of 
  fact 
  and 
  fiction 
  remained 
  com- 
  

   paratively 
  undisputed. 
  According 
  to 
  facts 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  

   pottery 
  at 
  Lowestoft 
  in 
  operation 
  from 
  1756 
  till 
  1803. 
  But 
  

   to 
  this 
  factory, 
  which 
  was 
  a 
  small 
  one, 
  Mr. 
  Chaffers 
  ascribed 
  

   an 
  output 
  greater 
  than 
  that 
  of 
  almost 
  all 
  the 
  other 
  English 
  

   factories 
  put 
  together. 
  The 
  situation 
  of 
  Lowestoft, 
  its 
  near- 
  

   ness 
  to 
  other 
  potteries, 
  all 
  of 
  which 
  were 
  making 
  soft-paste 
  

   porcelain 
  with 
  blue 
  and 
  white 
  decoration, 
  would 
  seem 
  to 
  

   indicate 
  that 
  the 
  ware 
  made 
  there 
  would 
  be 
  of 
  similar 
  char- 
  

   acter. 
  So 
  late 
  discoveries 
  

   have 
  proved, 
  for 
  within 
  the 
  

   past 
  two 
  years 
  molds 
  and 
  

   specimens 
  of 
  porcelain 
  have 
  

   been 
  discovered 
  which 
  are 
  

   exactly 
  what 
  might 
  have 
  

   been 
  expected. 
  Simple 
  

   shapes, 
  soft-paste 
  porcelain, 
  

   polychrome 
  or 
  plain 
  blue 
  

   decoration. 
  

  

  In 
  this 
  article, 
  however, 
  

   we 
  are 
  dealing 
  with 
  that 
  

   ware 
  which 
  for 
  so 
  many 
  

   years 
  d 
  e 
  1 
  i 
  g 
  h 
  t 
  ed 
  the 
  col- 
  

   lector's 
  heart 
  under 
  the 
  name 
  

   of 
  Lowestoft, 
  and 
  w 
  h 
  i 
  c 
  h 
  

   was 
  hard 
  porcelain, 
  Oriental 
  

   in 
  character, 
  but 
  charmingly 
  

   decorated. 
  It 
  is 
  the 
  variety 
  

  

  