Machin's moustache
Time for a splendid lunch in the garden...? Today we are looking at this stunning dessert service.
In the early 1900s there were as many of 300 potteries in Staffordshire alone, and many are not very well known. One pottery that deserves a lot more attention than it usually gets is Machin.
Machin & Co was in operation between 1812 and 1830 and made lots of pottery (earthenware) and also very high quality porcelain. As this was not a very long period and they didn't mark their wares, they are now quite rare, often misidentified as made by someone else, and very desired among collectors.
This stunning dessert service was made around 1825,. It has the famous "moustache" shape, a beautiful cobalt blue ground and hand painted flower reserves. The service consists of two oval dishes, four square shell dishes, and eight plates. Previously it was thought that these plates were made by Ridgway - a reference by Geoffrey A. Godden, the famous porcelain expert, in his well-known book "Ridgway Porcelains" widely broadcasted this very reasonable assumption as the style is very close to Ridgway's. However, recent research has shown that this design was made by Machin.
I have had these items before, and mis-sold them myself as Ridgway.... but they were made by Machin!
This dessert service is not the only Moustache item I have... I have two separate plates, as well as a whole other dessert service with adorable birds. The other dessert service has more wear, but it is good for use and the wear means that it is more affordable for those who don't want to spend as much.
This intriguing moustache shape was popular in the 1820s and you can see the moustache shaped moulding on the edges. The plates have a cobalt blue ground with a cream and gilt detail on the moustache shaped rims, and small flower reserves. In the centre of each item is a sublimely painted large flower. Each item is unique; there are no two flowers the same. We know very little about the painters at Machin as they did not document their work, but this service was certainly decorated by a very skilled artist. This pattern has been done in several different versions.
I have seen this style in many different versions... it was done many times in slightly different variations with different pattern numbers; I have so far sold nearly identical plates with numbers 611, 660, 692, 699, 733 and 848, and the longer I trade, the longer the list seems to grow.
Where to find things
You can find all my dessert services here, and all Machin items here. All my available stock is here. If you always want to see the latest additions, follow me on Instagram... I post pictures and a story every single day.
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Happy weekend, and make sure your moustache looks right! 🥸🕶🥸
This week's new treasures (including some additions to last week's treasures!):
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