A Pair of Moorcroft Macintyre Aurelian Small Vases, Late 19th Century

A fabulous pair of blue and white Art Nouveau bottle-shaped vases, featuring transfer-printed decoration in blue with six gold circles around the sides. William Moorcroft's earliest pieces at Macintyre were the Aurelian Ware transfer pieces, which eventually evolved into the Florian Ware designs of 1902. Both vases bear the printed Macintyre mark and the registration number 314901. Aurelian wares were registered from 1898.

Macintyre & Co., based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, was primarily known for manufacturing industrial ceramics. To capitalize on the popular souvenir market, they began producing crested ware. Around 1894, they opened an art pottery studio, employing established designers who introduced faience ware with raised slip and tube-lined designs. In 1897, Macintyre & Co. Ltd employed 26-year-old William Moorcroft as a designer. Within a year, he was put in charge of the company's art pottery studio as Chief Designer. By fortunate coincidence for Moorcroft, the senior designer, Harry Barnard, left Macintyre in 1897 to work for Wedgwood. The following year, Moorcroft assumed full control of the art pottery studio as Chief Designer. For many years, Moorcroft had sole control of that branch and was responsible for many unique artistic productions for which Macintyre & Co., Ltd. became well known.

Moorcroft created designs for Macintyre's Aurelian Ware range of high-Victorian pottery, characterized by transfer-printed and enameled decoration in bold red, blue, and gold colors. He also developed the Art Nouveau-influenced Florian Ware, which was decorated entirely by hand, with the design outlined in trailed slip using a technique known as tubelining. "Moorcroft Faience" is highly regarded in the trade. Moorcroft's designs won numerous medals at international fairs and were distributed by Liberty in London and Tiffany in New York. In 1913, Moorcroft left Macintyre & Co. to establish his own manufacturing company on Sandbach Road, Cobridge, Burslem. Some of the financing came from the famous London store Liberty, which continued to exercise control over Moorcroft until 1962. Moorcroft's reputation was further enhanced with the appointment of the Moorcroft company as Potter to HM The Queen in 1928. The work that Moorcroft did for Macintyre is among the highest-priced of all Macintyre products. These are collector's items sought after by thousands.

Dimensions:

Height: 14 cm

Diameter: 9 cm

Condition:

There are a few small chips on the bottom and minor loss of gilding on the rim. Otherwise, the vases are in excellent antique condition.

Please carefully study the accompanying photographs, as they form an integral part of this description. The item will be shipped with full tracking and insurance. Please note that shipping costs include labor, packaging, and postage.