Brand new Chinese imported Deco tea set.
Tea
Set, Imported From China
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Brand new Chinese imported Deco tea set.
Recently,
Chinese-made reproduction Art Deco styled tea sets in a Fulper-like glaze have
begun to surface in local markets and on Ebay. The shapes strongly
resemble Fulper Pottery's early Fulper-Stangl #1081 Square Modern (a.k.a. Deco
Delight) tea set shapes, but there are enough obvious differences so as not to
mistake these for Fulper originals. Fulper
Pottery Company introduced the Fulper-Stangl #1081 tea set shapes in 1926 and
produced them through the early 1930s. They
were made of lightweight earthenware and glazed in Fulper’s “Fayence”
colors Colonial Blue, Persian Yellow, Silver Green and Tangerine.
Original 1920s Fulper-Stangl #1081 Square Modern sugar, tea pot and creamer.
The
new imported Chinese sets include a teapot, creamer and covered sugar.
The sets are delivered from the importers bearing “Made In China”
paper labels on each piece, which are easily removed and become “lost” by
the time these pieces change hands several times and infiltrate the open market
via flea markets, antique shows and Ebay. We
cannot begin to speculate how many sets are sitting in group shops, shows or
flea markets waiting for the unsuspecting collector to snatch them up as
Stangl-Fulper rarities.
"Made in China" paper label.
An
interesting point to note is that the dealers offering these sets in the $35-$42
range on Ebay described the sets as NEW and no flim-flam scheme was being
perpetrated by these dealers. The
description used in one of these Ebay auctions was “Mission Teapot Set Arts
& Crafts Pottery Deco”. It
did not appear that the seller was trying to pass it off as anything other than
an inexpensive new tea set in this style. One
distributor even told us that cups and saucers and additional colors might be
offered in the future.
This
practice of copying desirable and valuable antiques and collectibles is no
surprise and not new!! The Japanese
and Chinese have been doing it for scores of years and in every category.
This is an outrage but there is little any of us can do about the
boatloads of reproductions flooding this country, except to fine-tune our
collecting skills.
DO
NOT BE DISCOURAGED! There are indeed some thrilling finds out there.
Stangl and Fulper are noted for samples, experimental and one-of-a-kind
items in addition to old and popular lines and true Fulper and Stangl
experiments and sample items are easily authenticated.
Education is more readily available now than ever before.
Arm yourself with books and seek out the advise of experts.
What an absolute pity to spend a king’s ransom on an item and then
later find out that it is indeed a reproduction.
Rob’s new book Collectors Encyclopedia of Stangl Artware, Lamps and
Birds due out soon will show you breath-taking examples of rarities and
one-of-a-kind items that have all been authenticated through research and
company records.
At
first glance, the distinctive #1081 Square Modern shape seems convincingly
authentic, especially with what appears to be Fulper’s Chinese Blue glaze.
While closely resembling Fulper’s Chinese Blue, this new version lacks
the depth, brilliance and crystals of the Fulper glaze.
The glaze on these pieces is probably not a deliberate imitation of the
Fulper glaze as the Chinese were the original developers of this glaze several
centuries before Fulper re-created around 1910.
One
exceptional difference between the Chinese and Fulper tea sets are the bases.
On the originals, the base is an attached square pedestal. The Chinese sets have bases separate from the body and act as
a coaster or trivet. This seems to
be a modern trend as there is a variety of Chinese imported tea sets in various
styles that all have separate coaster / trivet bases.
Repro teapot with separate "trivet" base.
Underside of the "trivet" base.
Underside of the attached base of the original #1081 tea pot.
The
body of these pieces is a white, vitreous china, similar to that used for toilet
bowls or restaurant china, vastly different from the stoneware and earthenware
bodies used by Fulper Pottery.
Base of the repro showing the white china body.
Comparison of sugar bowl bases.
The
new Chinese articles are considerably larger than the Fulper originals.
Original tea pot: 7-1/2” tall to top of cover.
Repro tea pot: 10-1/4” tall to top of cover.
Original creamer: 4-1/4" tall.
Repro creamer: 6-1/4” tall
Original sugar: 5-3/8” tall to top of cover.
Repro sugar: 7-3/8” tall to top of cover.
The
covers differ in size and shape, as do the openings.
Tea pot covers,
Original: 2-3/4" tall, 1-1/2" by 2-1/4" rectangular.
Repro: 3" tall, 2-1/2" square, interchangeable with the sugar cover.
Sugar covers, (underside shown)
Original: 2" tall, 1-1/2" by 2-1/4" rectangular.
Repro: 3" tall, 2-1/2" square, interchangeable with the tea pot cover.
Difference in openings of the tea pots.
The
vertical ornamentation on the original tea set was three flutes;
while
the vertical ornamentation on the repro pieces are three raised ridges.
Fulper Fayence Fake Paper Labels
A few faked "Fulper Fayence" paper
labels have recently been found on older pieces of unmarked American pottery,
such as Haeger and McCoy. This one, based on Fulper's square paper label
of the 1920s, appears to be photocopied on brown kraft paper and aged. The
size is smaller and the border and logo configuration differ from Fulper's
original as well. Original Fulper labels have product information
rubber-stamped or hand written in ink. The fake label is written in
pencil. Although the fake label appears aged and worn, the pencil writing
is crisp and fresh. Also, the brown kraft paper of the fake has a high rag
content, which can be seen under a magnifying glass along the artificially worn
edges. Fulper's original labels were printed on thin white paper, and have
usually aged and darkened in irregular patterns. The original Fulper
labels measure 1-1/4" by 1-1/2". The fake label measures 1"
by 1-1/4".
Fake Fulper Fayence paper label, photocopied on brown kraft paper.
Two original Fulper Fayence paper labels