Barque, Brig, Fairy of the Sea, and Ship – Sunderland
According to Baker, Ball's Deptford Pottery operated over a long period (pre-1862), trading as Ball Brothers from 1884 until 1914. The white earthenware items decorated in pink or orange lustre tend to be heavily potted and poorly executed. As I've never recorded an example with a dated inscription from this pottery, I have little clue how to date and arrange the items on this page chronologically. My guess is that they all belong to the Ball Brothers period, and that the orange items came first. The pink lustre items might almost be described as 'reproductions' of Sunderland wares from the heyday of the 1840s and 50s – the Ball's jugs and bowls coming some 50 years after the event and, in some cases, with spurious 'Dixon, Phillips & Co' marks added.
Ball's acquired many transfer plates and moulds from both Tyneside and Wearside potteries. See this page for ships from Moore's/Scott's recycled by Ball. However, I haven't found the 'Ball ship' transfers below on wares from other potteries, so perhaps they were unique to Ball's.
Ball's acquired many transfer plates and moulds from both Tyneside and Wearside potteries. See this page for ships from Moore's/Scott's recycled by Ball. However, I haven't found the 'Ball ship' transfers below on wares from other potteries, so perhaps they were unique to Ball's.
Ball's Deptford Pottery – Barque
This bowl combines two of the Ball ships with another from a recycled transfer plate shared by Scott's and Moore's (below centre). I've included further photos in the Brig section below. Please see Ian Holmes' site for a comprehensive survey of Jack Crawford transfers.
This item, and the bowl below, look similar to items from Moore's/Scott's from the 1870s, but many of the transfers are specific to Ball's.
Photo Hartley's Auctioneers
The ship with its title clipped, on a pink lustre bowl. As discussed above, pink lustreware was revived by Ball's, c1900.
Ball's Deptford Pottery – Brig
Below, some further photos of the Jack Crawford bowl in the 'Barque' section above.
This tall jug shape was not used by the earlier Sunderland potters, and likely dates from the 1880s or after.
These bowls with faint and degraded imprints from the transfer could be as late as 1900.
Ball's Deptford Pottery – The Fairy of The Sea
Again, see Ian's site for some background to Willie Wouldhave's 'unsinkable' lifeboat. The transfers on this bowl are relatively rare, and unique to Ball's.
On this frog mug the ship transfer is paired with a verse 'The Fairy of the Sea'.
Ball's Deptford Pottery – Ship
The naive decoration on this mug is typical of later wares by Ball's.
