Antique Henriot Quimper French Faience Small Petit Breton Jug - Ref. aug63
Quimper, a small pottery town in the province of Brittany, north-west France, was associated with pottery making since the Roman Era. Originally settled by the Celts who migrated from Wales, it only became part of France in 1532 and the province still retains its Celtic character.
It was Jean-Baptiste Bousquet, originally from Marseille, who started his pottery in Quimper around the 1690's, producing rather utilitarian pottery such as tableware. Â His son took over from him in 1708 and the factory expanded, tobacco pipes being a standard production article. By the early 19th century the factory was under the management of de la Hubaudiere and became known as the H.B factory, one of three important pottery outfits.
Faience work received a tremendous boost during the reign of Louis XIV, who, being bankrupt, had the idea of confiscating all utensils, vessels and plates made out of gold or silver. This led to a rush by the French elite to quickly replace their possessions with something else, in this case, faience work.
Faience factories sprung up around the whole of France, causing yet another problem. The forests were being denuded at an alarming rate, all in an effort to keep the pottery kilns going. The government soon had to curtail the production of pottery to only a few areas.
This did not appear to worry those in Brittany. They were too far from French authority and continued to produce their pottery. In any case, they had, long before, implemented the conservation and renewal of forests. The HB Factory is thought to have introduced the typical Breton peasant scenes found on the Quimper faience in around the 1860/s and by 1863, each village had its own identity and distinctive costume depicted on its pottery
The Henriot factory, in Quimper appears to have started production around the very late 18th century.Early pieces were in earthernware and this accounts for the fact that many articles show typical distress and wear, such as the jug above. Chips, cracks are generally encountered as the norm
This is a classic, sturdy, hand-painted, little early Quimper jug, blue and yellow banding at both the top and bottom rims, and decorated with a Breton, holding a pipe. There are the usual swatches of blue and red flowers on either side of the figure and the jug is marked 'H.R. Quimper in brown below the handle. It dates to around the 1900's
There are the typical shallow chips around the rim and spout of the jug, due to usage. The handle, at some time, was broken and repaired. Otherwise, it remains in pretty good condition and shows warm, vibrant colors, and is a nice early example of 'standard' production.
The jug stands roughly 11cm high with a diameter of 7cm across the mouth. Including the handle, it is 12 cm wide.
This is a genuine antique. Please remember the classification of an 'antique' is that it should be 100 years old, OR MORE. There are many articles being offered as 'antiques' when, clearly, they are not.
Price R285.00
Post R50.00
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