~ 19th Century Staffordshire Figure Of A Seated Youth ~
An appealing and vividly coloured Staffordshire pottery figure of a seated youth, modelled fully in the round and painted with remarkable liveliness and detail. The young man is depicted perched casually upon a tree stump, one leg crossed, holding a shallow wicker-style basket overflowing with painted fruits — plums, apples and peaches in purple, red and pink, scattered with green foliage. He wears a green sleeveless waistcoat over a white open-necked shirt, an orange sash tied around his waist, blue breeches, pale pink stockings with orange garters at the knee, and black buckled shoes. His straw boater hat, painted in cream with an orange ribbon bow, lies upon the naturalistic base at his feet, suggesting a moment of rustic ease.The base is painted in naturalistically rendered green and brown tones. The underside is fully glazed white with characteristic age-related crazing and a small firing hole, consistent with authentic 19th-century Staffordshire production. No maker's mark is present, as is entirely typical of the period.A particularly notable feature of this piece is that it is modelled fully in the round — decorated on all sides including the back — distinguishing it from the more common and later flatback figures produced for the mass mantelpiece market from the mid-Victorian period onwards.
~ Historical Context ~
Victorian Staffordshire figures were made in the UK between 1837 and 1900, typically decorated with coloured enamels over a plain lead glaze — images in clay "of the people by the people," capturing idealised scenes and subjects of popular interest. Madelena
Most Victorian figures from 1837 to 1900 were designed to stand on a shelf or mantelpiece and are therefore only modelled and decorated from the front and sides — known as "flatbacks." However, the more expensive figures were more carefully modelled and painted. This piece's fully modelled and decorated reverse places it in this higher-quality category, and suggests it is likely from the earlier part of the Victorian era or possibly pre-Victorian, circa 1840–1855, when fully-modelled figures in the round were more prevalent before the flatback dominated production. Hansons Auctioneers
The pastoral subject of a rustic youth resting with a basket of harvest fruit belongs to a long tradition in English pottery, drawing from Rococo and early Neoclassical influences that filtered through from Continental porcelain into the populist Staffordshire tradition. Such figures evoked an idealised vision of rural English life that appealed enormously to the growing urban middle class of the Industrial Revolution era.
Makers' marks are generally absent on Staffordshire figures, as most were produced by small, anonymous potteries.
~ Dimensions ~
The figurine is 13.5 inches (43.4 cm) tall and weighs 1.54 kg.
~ Condition ~
Glaze crazing is present throughout, clearly visible on the white areas and underside — entirely consistent with and expected in an earthenware piece of this age
Colours are vivid and well-preserved, with no apparent repainting or restoration — the orange, cobalt blue, green and polychrome fruit decoration all appear original
No chips are visible to the principal surfaces from the images provided
Back and sides are fully painted and intact — a significant positive
Underside shows the glazed base with age-related crazing and a ventilation hole, unmarked
