As always we recommend that you need to view the sale for at least 2 hours, and new collectors are advised to create a ‘bidding plan’ with 'either/or' scenarios. Rather than set your heart on one piece (others will do the same!) make a list of 10, 20 or even 30 pieces, particularly if your favourite lot is early in the sale. At every sale there are bargains, and rather than going home empty-handed, a piece bought at a good price may serve as an excellent ‘swap’ with another collector at a later date.

We were able to spend 4 hours investigating this treasure trove to produce our exclusive report, along with custom images which collectors may find useful as they offer alternate views to those in the catalogue.

This biggest ‘news’ in the sale is the amazing set discovered in South America, where it was sent as a special order in 1932 or 1933. This ‘Oranges & Lemons’ set is vast and includes the miniature coffee cans. These were first seen in ‘Honolulu’ in the set made for Sheila Murray of South Africa in 1933, as told in ‘Taking Tea with Clarice Cliff’. The quality of the painting on the set is clear from the picture above. Delivery time on these sets would have been up to 6 months. In the case of this set as it has 1932 datemarks on the flatware it was probably not with the customer until 1933.

This Bon Jour range is well represented in the sale with not one but two sifters in ‘Cabbage Flower’ and also the vase variation, created by putting an oval opening in the top of the Bon Jour sifter - this is in ‘Honolulu’. There are also examples in this sale of a larger size Bon Jour vase in ‘Secrets’ and ‘Coral Firs’.

The sale also has a number of good ‘fancies’ the smaller more novelty items and shapes that Clarice Cliff was so fond of.

On the left is the rare shape 481 in ‘Red Autumn’ / Café au lait. The shape was based on the shape 460 vase. Previously Christie’s sold an example  in ‘Orange House’ and it is believed there are less than 5 examples of this shape known. In the middle is a rare 1929 pattern, ‘Orange Battle’ which was revived briefly in 1931/32 when it was produced on Cafe au Lait ware, such as this example on a beaker. On the right is the 1931 ‘Tennis’ on a Fern pot. Fern pots evolved in Victorian times when there was a fashion to grow ferns indoors. This shape may not date back quite as far as that but was a pre-Clarice Cliff Wilkinson shape.

There are several good cruets, including a Muffineer set in ‘Blue Chintz’, and the beautifully painted Conical shape cruet in ‘Crocus’.

Another unusual fancy is the large size Cauldron in the 1936 ‘Lorna’ pattern. The vase to its left is a rarity as the ‘Bowling’ pattern is not often seen, and this example has lining in black, blue green and orange. On the right is a 565 vase in Rudyard.

A newly discovered pattern has been named ‘Midnight Flower’. It is on a plate which is a prototype used to experiment mixing aerographing and on-glaze colour. There is a full feature about this in the members’ area of the Clarice Cliff Collectors Club. For details of how to join to see this and many other exclusive features click here.

A lot which has a fascinating history is the pair of unique ‘Appliqué Idyll’ plaques commissioned for Threlfalls Brewery in late 1932. They had headquarters in both Liverpool and Manchester, and the original Liverpool company can be traced back to the 19th century. The plaques were hand painted at the factory with the Threlfall markings so were either produced for display at the brewery or one of their public houses. It's likely these were made to special order for the brewery.

There are two lots both with early Fantasque range patterns. On the left is a shape 234 Rose Bowl in ‘Pebbles’, and on the right ‘Fruit’ on a shape 205. The small range had purple outlining, and orange and blue banding.

Another interesting vase is one showing how Clarice Cliff was constantly evolving her techniques. This Inspiration shape vase was made when the technique was experimental and the amount of ‘run’ and thickness of glaze depended on the unpredictable coal-fired enamel kilns. . Clarice experimented with using a raw orange red glaze on the base of some Inspiration pieces which the blue glazes ran down over. This is now referred to as ‘Inspiration Flame’, as she used the term ‘Flame’ in her My Garden range. The success of the technique was in the hands of ‘placers’ whose skill was in  knowing in which part of the kiln to put different types of ware or decoration techniques

A notable example of Crocus is the Double Inkwell a shape 462 which still has both the rather fragile caps for the wells of ink. Such pieces were functional but like many of Clarice’s ‘fancies’, not cheap and were designed as quality gifts. It is pictured with a pair of rare 703 vases. This Modernist shape was created at the same time Clarice was evolving more heavily modelled ware, and demonstrates that she designed not just to her own taste but also in diverse styles to cover the potential market as effectively as possible. This pair of vases are decorated in the 1935 ‘Pine Grove’ pattern.

The ‘star’ vase in the sale is likely to be the ‘Sunspots’ shape 358. ‘Sunspots’ falls into a small category of patterns produced between 1930 and 1931 which consisted of Cubist / Kandinsky style images created just with freehand brushstrokes, no outline. Best known of these is the sought after ‘Tennis’ pattern, which is as vibrantly coloured as ‘Sunspots’, which is known from less than 15 examples at present.  The original names of these patterns are known; ‘Sunspots’ is a name coined by the Clarice Cliff Collectors Club in the 1990’s. The 358 ‘Sunspots’ is pictured with two 358 vases in ‘Original Bizarre’.  This clean, simple shape was designed by Clarice Cliff in 1928 to take her patterns with their banding easily, and these examples will date from 1928 or 1929.

Jampot collectors might be tempted by examples in ‘Rhodanthe’, ‘Taormina Orange’ and ‘Newlyn’. As none of these 3 later patterns featured banding it's obvious that each has its correct lid. With earlier jampot the massive variety of banding on lids causes collectors confusion.

Perhaps the most unusual Conical sugar sifter in the sale is the example in ‘Zap’ as it is on a   Café au lait ground. This pattern features typical Clarice Cliff flowers and leaves woven with abstract forms. This sifter is from 1932 and ‘Zap’ was originally issued in 1930.

The sale has some good teasets, of which this set in ‘Morocco’ is one, but sadly there is damage to the teapot. This is one of the patterns we have a definite original name for as in the archive at Stoke on Trent is a drawing showing the pattern on an 'Oct bowl' (Octagonal bowl) after which it says 'pattern is Morroco' (sic).  The drawing dates from 1929 and shows a colourway in just orange and black. Now, the appearance of this rare pattern on a Conical set shows it was also produced in colourway of black/ orange/ blue/ yellow. The pattern is also on the saucers, a practice the factory phased out on most production ware shortly after this, but it was done occasionally on samples.

Another rare teaset is in ‘Appliqué Palermo’. This continued Clarice Cliff's initial theme with a range of continental scenes in bright colours, which started with ‘Lucerne’ and ‘Lugano’ in Spring 1930. This Conical set would date from later in 1930 or 1931. Teasets in ‘Appliqué Palermo’ are extremely rare although there is in the Clarice Cliff archive an original advertising picture of a Stamford teapot in ‘Palermo’.

There is also a Stamford teaset in the green colourway of the 1933 pattern ‘Chintz’. There is a full feature about this in the Pattern Post in the members’ area of the Clarice Cliff Collectors Club. For details of how to join to see this and many other exclusive features click here.

Unusually the sale has some significant Biarritz landscape plates: these are in ‘Secrets’. ‘Coral Firs’ and  ‘Alton’ which was produced in three colourways, green, orange and brown. It was named after Alton Towers a Staffordshire beauty spot, now a theme park. Clarice Cliff would drive past on her way to Nottingham where one of her friends was china and Glass buyers at the Griffin and Spalding store.

Details of other pieces from the sale are in our ‘Members’ area’ in extended features. These include the second example known of ‘Square Balloons’, the newly discovered shape 892 vase, and a stunning coffeeset in ‘Picasso Flower’.

Sometimes the item you like the look of most in the catalogue is not the one that appeals the most ‘in the flesh’ - be open minded as you view. Christie’s are happy to advise on possible damage or restoration, and if you go to the view the Sunday before the sale you should bump into some other Clarice Cliff Collectors Club members. On the day of the sale try and get a chair, a good view of the auctioneer, and take in some liquid refreshment – concentration is the order of the day, as the best way to learn about prices is note each result as it happens.

Best of Luck!
 

* The report does not take into account condition or possible restoration