Mamluk fritware jar, of baluster form, painted inglaze with blue designs in the Chinese style, with panels of birds and flower pots within lattice borders and flowerhead reserves, the shoulder with scrolling foliage, the slightly flared lip with a dash pattern.
Syrian, probably Damascus,
15th century

A similar example, very stained, from the Tareq Rajah Museum, Kuwait, can be seen in Ceramics of the Islamic World by Tauris, p 252. A related jar is in the Helen Barlow Collection, and both are dated to the early 15th century. As the century progressed, the designs moved away from directly copying Ming porcelain, and introduced Islamic motifs. This vase is a mixture, with the contents of the panels - the bird and the vase of flowers - belonging to the Middle East, while the borders and rim are still borrowing from the Far East. This places the vase in the latter 15th century.

Nottingham saltglaze bear jug, modeled in a seated position, with a bear-baiting dog in it's paws, the separated head-lid with open mouth and protruding tongue, a ring through the nose, the whole covered in a shredded clay brown saltglaze coat.
Mid 18th century.

These items were novelty productions from the Nottingham potters, and reflect the street amusement of bear-baiting common in Europe up until the 18th century.
Ref. Oswald, English Brown Stoneware p129 for a similar example.
The lid is a lighter colour, however examination of the base reveals an exact match for this pale colour. This suggests the areas starved of oxygen in the kiln fired pale, and the ornate lid may well have been placed inside a pot to fire, thus starving it of oxygen and causing it to fire pale.

English creamware tea canister, the square form deeply moulded with cauliflower leaves and head, the upper left a natural cream colour, with a translucent green glaze to the leaves and pooling on the base.
Attributed to William Greatbatch, Fenton, Staffordshire, c.1770

ref. Barker, William Greatbatch, pl 190 for a coffee pot with the same leaf veining, where he states that Greatbatch cauliflower modelling is distinctive, and come from a range of block moulds which are rarely added to. The back jacket of this book shows a box full of 100's of cauliflower shards excavated from his factory site which match this example very well, allowing a strong attribution.

Very rare cream boat by Champion's Bristol, with blue & white painted decoration in the Worcester style, rare blue cross mark.
Circa 1775

Mark

Worcester mug, with slightly flared foot, decorated with black prints by Hancock, including the portrait of Frederick the Great, titled King of Prussia and dated 1757, a trophy panel with military devices and three banners bearing the most famous of Frederick's battles, signed lower left RH Worcester, and a large winged victory playing a double trumpet.
Unmarked, c. 1760

These prints are documentary evidence of Robert Hancock's move to Worcester, from Bow. He was a freelance engraver, probably learning the trade at the pioneering Battersea enamel works, then experimenting with the technique at Bow, and perfecting it at Worcester. 1757 is the accepted date for the move to Worcester, and the King of Prussia mugs are of the same date.

Rare Pinxton coffee can, painted with pattern 221, with an oval scene of figures by a house on a trackway, within a wide gild line and flowerhead border, with gold to the rim and band to the base.
Red inscription In Derbyshr, also 221
circa 1798

MARK

Worcester lobed rim dessert plate, sharply printed in black with figures admiring statues in classical ruins, the borders with swags of flowers, with a gold line rim.
Unmarked, c.1775

Described by Spero & Sandon in the Zorensky collection book as rare.
ref. Zorensky p374

Rare Doccia coffee pot, the baluster shape with tall birds head spout, painted with flower groups.
Circa 1770

ref. Palazzo Pitti catalogue, p37 for a similar example, c.1760-80, where it states ...in the first period, the flowers were painted in a fairly naturalistic manner.... which describes this example well.

A rare Frankenthal table box of large size, the lid with a Watteauesque scene, the sides with flower groups & landscapes containing urns on plinths.

Fugative mark, c. 1770

Large Meissen charger, of petal-lobed rim form, painted in the Kakiemon manner with three large sprays of flowering plants and a central butterfly, the rim with three small sprays and three further butterflies, the whole with numerous small leaves and flowers painted over firing flaws, within a brown line rim.
Blue crossed swords with dots at the pommels, impressed 20, also inscribed // to the footrim.
Circa 1740

ref. Size collection #97 for a dinner plate in this pattern. As a serving dish, the pattern has been adapted; the butterfly remains in the center, but has lost the branch it rests on, and the distinct rim sprigs have been relocated to the center, and enlarged; note in particular the blue leafed plant with purple ball flowers which is bound together with a blue ribbon.
The inscribed // is a workmans mark that appears on pieces from the 1730-40 period, for example Syze # 96 & #65.

Rare Meissen spittoon, of squared form with single handle, painted in underglaze blue with a delightful 'lotus' pattern, with cell border to the rim enclosing oriental flower sprigs.
Crossed swords mark with 'K' (the so-called Kretschmar mark, possibly the artist who painted the piece & found on a range of Meissen c.1730-40)
Circa 1735