Studio RT Ltd

Description

We are offering this superb Burmantofts Faience Pottery Spoon Warmer, modelled as a grotesque 3 legged warty Toad. The standing toads are the larger of the two toad models and come with closed eyes and glass eyes, which are more desirable, as does this one. It bears the impressed factory mark BURMANTOFTS FAIENCE and ENGLAND and the Model Number 583 and a T.

This is an example of a number of grotesque novelties manufactured by Burmantofts at the end of the 19th Century, including frogs, toads, dragons and crocodiles.

Burmantofts Pottery was the common trading name of a manufacturer of ceramic pipes and construction materials, named after the Burmantofts district of Leeds, England.

The business began in 1859 when fire clay was discovered in a coal mine owned by William Wilcock and John Lassey. In 1863 Lassey's share was bought by John Holroyd and the company then named Wilcock & Co.

In 1879, after a period of expansion, the firm made decorative bricks and tiles in orange or buff-coloured architectural terracotta, glazed bricks, and glazed terracotta (faience). Architect Alfred Waterhouse used their materials in his Yorkshire College (1883) in Leeds, and his National Liberal Club (1884) in London. From 1880 they also made art pottery such as vases and decorative domestic items.

This was produced between 1880 and 1904 at the instigation of James Holroyd, the works manager, as an addition to industrial glazed ceramic products. Companies such as Mintons, Royal Doulton and William De Morgan had established a market for middle-class home decorative objects. The company was fortunate in having both coal and four sorts of high-purity clay on the same site. The plasticity gave good reproduction of shape and the low iron content meant there was not discoloration by oxidation when fired at high temperature, giving glazes of high clarity and brilliance.

Early examples were individual works of art, notably in barbotine style where a plain base had a design worked in relief with slip and painted, but the company soon developed production lines for decoration of individual shapes, either in a single glaze or painted with flowers and so on (signed by the decorator), for sale at a lower price to a larger market, but still of high quality. Over 2000 different shapes are recorded, including pots, vases, bottles and table items. The base usually had 'Burmantofts Faience' or later 'BF' on the base, along with the shape number. Influences included Art Nouveau, Persian, Chinese and Japanese. French artist Pierre Mallet (who also designed for Minton's) contributed a number of designs. Decorative tiles were also produced.

In 1885 products were on sale in London (at Harrods and Liberty's), Paris and Montreal. However, by 1904 the products were no longer profitable because of a large number of competing products from Britain and nearby Europe of lower price, and production ceased.

In 1888 the company was renamed The Burmantofts Company but in 1889 it merged with other Yorkshire companies to found The Leeds Fireclay Co. Ltd., the largest in the country.
The firm closed in 1957, at which time it comprised ninety kilns on 16 acres (65,000 m2) of land.

The reason for spoon warmers was that due to the cold of the average Victorian dining room, it was felt that serving food with a cold spoon would cause it to cool down faster, so the spoon warmer was invented and came in both silver, silverplate and pottery/earthenware.

Length: 20cm

Height: 16cm

Depth: 12.5cm

Condition: Very good. Has its original glass eyes, no visible crazing, chips or cracks. There is 1 small patch of missing glaze from manufacture in the interior and a small amount of missing glaze on each foot, which is normal. It has had some historic professional restoration to its right-hand front leg.