Blue Willow China

[rafesgirl]

Spode Blue Willow

I have been collecting Blue Willow for about 30 years now and it is quite impossible to contain my excuberance when finding a new piece. Price sometimes is the only deterrent and even that fails occasionally. It is the only china pattern that I know of which is based on a romantic legend. Essential Blue Willow components are a Chinese temple, bridge, island, and two birds in flight. There are several versions of the legend but each has the essential core parts. This one is in poem form, author unknown, but one of my favourites.

Legend of the Blue Willow

My Blue Willow ware plate has a story
Pictorial, painted in blue
From the land of tea and the tea plant
And the little brown man with a queue.

Whatever the food to be served
Romance does enter the feast
If you only pay heed to the legend
On the old china plate from the East.

Koong-Shee was a mandarin's daughter
And Chang was her sweetheart ah me
For surely her father's accountant
Might never wed pretty Koong-Shee.

So Chang was expelled from the compound
The beautiful alliance to break
And pretty Koong-Shee was imprisoned
In a little blue house by the lake.

The Dour old mandarin reasoned
It was time that his daughter should wed
And the groom of his choosing shall banish
That silly romance in her head.

While friends of Koong-Shee imagined
In symbols the dress she should wear
Her husband to be sat thinking
She should ride in a gold wedding chair.

He was busily plotting and planning
When a message was brought him one day
Young Chang had invaded the palace
And taken his promised away.

They were over the bridge when he saw them
They were passing the big willow tree
And a boat at the edge of the water
Stood waiting for Chang and Koong-Shee.

The furious mandarin followed
The groom with revenge in his eyes
But the little boat danced on the water
And travelled away with the prize.

But vengeance pursued to their shelter
And burned the pagoda, they say--
From out of the flames rose the lovers
A pair of doves winging away.

They fled toward the Western heaven
The pretty Koong-Shee and her Chang
Or so says the famous old legend
From the land of the Yangtze Kiang.

I couldn't be one to deny it
For the little blue dove and her mate
Forever are flying together
Across my Blue Willow ware plate.

Thomas Minton developed and engraved the design, after the legend, in Staffordshire,UK in 1780. For over 200 years the Willow Pattern has been produced by nearly every British Pottery Manufacturer, including Royal Worcester, Spode, Adams, Wedgewood, Davenport, Booth, Royal Doulton, and countless others. Changes in the pattern have been slight over the years, and usually the border treatment is altered. No other type of china is more attractive than a really good piece of willow. But, nothing can be uglier than a cheap imitation with blips and blobs, rather than trees and bridges. This pattern has been reproduced badly, more than any other design in history.


Padden Citys Old Blue Willow


Southern Potteries Dark Red Willow


Worcester Willow Pattern 1912


Booths Real Old Willow

[wisteria-cottage-collectables]

Wow what a beautiful collection, you have some lovely pieces.
I collect B&W too, just what I pick up at charity shops and garage sales (yard sales)... I am Aussie:-)

[rafesgirl]

It's so nice to hear from other collectors!

Gail

[pukmis]

Hi ya old thread!!!

* not sure where this was but needed to look for some info...

'We're all pirates with jedi tendencies'
...Jimmy Nations

[2006gailg]

I have quite a few pieces of Booths real old blue willow. There seems to be a difference on the back when I look at whats on ebay. Mine say silicone china above the real old blue willow. Do you know what thats all about

[rafesgirl]

My understanding of the phrase silicon china is that the maker is refering to the body of the china. Silicon would be an opaque china, where other pieces of the Real Old Willow pattern, made by Royal Doulton are on a translucent china body. If your piece has for example:
9072
"Crown" mark
SILICON CHINA
ENGLAND
would have been made between 1906 and 1918.

OR

9072
"Crown" mark
SILICON CHINA
MADE IN ENGLAND
would have been made between 1944 and 1981.

Hope that helps!

[pukmis]

Hey there Gail...long time no type...
Just checking with you...
Willow Blue J & G Meakin...can you pin down a date other than prior to 1890???






Hope life is treatin' ya well!!!

'We're all pirates with jedi tendencies'
...Jimmy Nations

[2006gailg]

Hello girls
I might have picture up soon but in the meantime, my blue willow has the crown but does not have booth printed across it.Above the crown is printed Booths. Just below the crown it says silicon china. Below that it says Made in England. Below that it says Real Old Blue Willow.Some of the pieces have numbers and or letters embedded in them. Unlike the pieces I have seen on ebay the flourish of the W on Willow goes over the top of the two LL s and lands just above the O. The bottom flourish of the R in Real comes under the e and lands just under the a.There are other marks on these pieces which are nondiscript.I have about 6 tiny little bowls, I have no idea what they would have been used for. The soup or cereal bowls are not scalloped.

[2006gailg]

Is there site one can go to to find out more about this

[pukmis]

Here is a link to help date your Booths backstamp...

http://www.thepotteries.org/mark/b/booths.html

'We're all pirates with jedi tendencies'
...Jimmy Nations

[rafesgirl]

THANK YOU ANNIE:-x

[pukmis]

Lookin' like a bump to me...

[wackomako]

Hi, my friend gave me these blue willow candle sticks for a car boot sale and was wondering if anyone knew a bit more about them? They seem too nice to be selling at a car boot sale. Thanks

[karl*katz]

Wackomako

I would suggest that you post on the ebay.com

"Pottery Glass & Porcelain Board"

http://forums.ebay.com/db2/forum/Pottery-Glass-Porcelain/75