Delftware, pronounced as it appears, originally meant the blue and white pottery made in the area of Northern Europe between Antwerp and Amsterdam. The first Delftware was produced in 1512 and reached its height of production in the Netherlands from 1640 to 1740. The potteries in the Netherlands produced over 8 million tiles over 200 years, and the old tiles, as well as newly made tiles, are still available today.

The popularity of the blue and white products for inside the house (tiles, vases, dinnerware, etc.) comes from the bright blue and white patterns used to decorate the wares. The clay base is covered with a tin glaze which becomes hard, shiny and opaque when fired. The white ground allows other metal oxide glazes to be painted over the tin glaze and the colors remain bright. Cobalt oxide makes the blue glaze used to decorate everything that the potteries created for the middle class household. The products were so desirable, examples of delftware were taken to China and Japan, where their Chinese potteries produced blue and white china and porcelain items were then exported back to Europe.

The popularity of the blue and white wares produced in Holland was such that eventually all blue and white ware has become Delftware, regardless of its place of origin. This means the collector must learn to recognize the style of decoration used by different locations and manufacturers. Fortunately, the Dutch marked their blue and white china from the beginning, unlike a lot of places and types of porcelain where marks were not used until later in their productive lives. So the collector of old Delftware can identify the makers of a piece of porcelain, sometimes even to the name of the man who painted the piece.

Modern delftware is still produced by two companies in the Netherlands:

• Tichelaar factory in Makkum, Friesland, founded 1594, web site: http://www.tichelaar.nl/en/index.php
• De Koninklijke Porceleyne Fles (Royal Porcelain Bottle) founded 1653, web site: http://www.royaldelft.com/

The second factory produces both blue and white and polychrome (many colors, but with a lot of blue) porcelain. New ornaments cost from $25 to $40, figures run from $150 to $600, vases are $150 to $515. The factory also produces covered jars ($200-$515), pitchers ($200-$325) and large plates and plaques ($400-$2000).

Unmarked or “hand-painted in Holland” wares are available in great quantities and at all prices. In collecting unmarked pieces, the buyer must either work with a dealer and expert, educate himself, or buy what she is interested in without worrying about source. With continued exposure, the collector will begin to discern between the cheap, the better and the best. Collecting the best need not be the ultimate goal. Collecting pieces from a particular location or factory, or a particular pattern or form of object (like soup tureens) is just as worthwhile. How about canister sets, regardless of pattern or maker? Or all the tea bag caddies you can find?  Or metal forks with blue and white handles? There are a lot of possibilities, so find a niche and do your thing.

There are many books available to the blue and white and/or the Delftware collector. These can tell you what specifically to look for and the various marks used by those factories which use them. They will also give you an idea about the various forms and patterns created, and may spark an idea for your collection.

On a final note, the Dutch have seen so much tourist-aimed blue and white pottery that they no longer care for it, which is the usual tale of something that achieves great popularity.

The images on this post are from Stock Xchnge.

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