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Liverpool Sparrow Beak Jug c.1775-85

This Liverpool Sparrow Beak jug was made by Seth Pennington in c.1775-85, & is decorated in the "Pleasureboat," or as it is sometimes known, the "Fisherman & Cormorant" pattern. The jug is unmarked.
The pattern was produced by a number of factories (see our free article).

Condition is good with only a small chip to the beak.

Measures 3 3/4 inches high.

Price SOLD !

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Commonly referred to as the "Fisherman & Cormorant" pattern, this transfer printed design was produced by a number of manufacturers, notably Worcester (see also our coffee cup for sale on this site), Caughley, & Isleworth.

The jug has a cell diaper border, & a simple loop handle, there is a chip to the tip of the beak.

The pattern is alleged to show the story of how the Chinese fishermen train the native bird, the cormorant, to dive for fish as it would in the wild, but instead of consuming the fish, they are trained to return with it to the fisherman.

Although most English Chinoiserie patterns are inspired by Chinese originals, this pattern is unusual in that there are only a handful of pieces, maybe a dozen or so, of Chinese porcelain known in this pattern, suggesting that this pattern is probably an English one that was later copied by the Chinese.

There are subtle differences between this pattern produced at the different factories, the shape of the fishing rod being one of them. The Liverpool version has a more boomerang shaped outline (see our free article).

The porcelain produced by Seth Pennington was a bone ash, or phosphatic porcelain, you can see the odd spot of yellow/brown discolouration to the rim & the beak. The glaze has also a typical blue tinge where it has pooled, & there is quite a lot of peppering to the glaze inside the footrim & handle.

This jug also exhibits some crazing as can be seen in the photos above & below.

This is a nice example of a Seth Pennington Sparrow Beak Jug dating to c.1775-85, with the chip to the spout being the only fault. It would be a nice addition to any collection of 18th Century English Porcelain.