Lowestoft porcelain jug

The Lowestoft factory, unlike other early English porcelain factories, stayed in business for forty years. They deliberately appealed to a middle class, rather than an aristocratic market, and kept their prices affordable. Many of their wares were relatively simple, not always of the highest quality compared to some other porcelains available at the time.

This jug would have been among their most expensive ranges, as glazing in multiple colours requires each glaze to be fired separately. A deep pink colour predominates. This represents a nod to high fashion, as it was a popular colour of the time, much used by the trend-setting European Meissen and Sèvres porcelain factories.

The floral design is also in a European style. The standard of Lowestoft painters was variable, and it was usual for different types of decoration to be painted by different people. It is particularly obvious on this jug because whoever painted the flowers and ribbons clearly left a space for the cherub to be added afterwards. The cherub painter did a much clumsier job, and has obviously had great difficulty squashing the cherub into the space!