English Porcelain Dr Syntax Monogrammed Jug C1830

A remarkable and stunning English porcelain jug (possibly New Hall or Daniel?), moulded in relief with acanthus leaf and scrolls, these richly gilded to the details. To either side of the neck are painted fine flower groups inside gilded cartouches. The jug is superbly hand painted to each side with a scene from the Tours of Dr Syntax. The fore shows Dr Syntax Pursued by a Bull, the Doctor forced by the presence of a large bull to flee to the security of a tree, his papers scattered to the wind, as the rest of the herd give every impression of being vastly amused by the comical spectacle. The reverse illustrates Dr Syntax sells Grizzle (his horse). The jug is monogrammed in gilt A B to either side of the spout and is indistinctly signed GIL (?).

Thomas Rowlandson was born in London in 1756 and was to become on the of most famous political lampoonists and caricaturists of his age - the era of King George III. There was little censorship at the time & some 'vicious' cartoons were drawn of political figures. Rowlandson collaborated with the famous London publisher, Rudolph Ackermann, to produce some of the finest satirical volumes in the history of art. His most famous works are The Microcosm of London (1808), the Tour of Dr. Syntax in Search of the Picturesque (1812) and The English Dance of Death, published in two volumes in 1814 and 1816. The Doctor Syntax sketches that lampooned England's poor country clerics had rhymes, written by the troubled poet William Combe, to match them. The learned Doctor leaves his wife to tour England "in Search of the Picturesque" and publish a book of his experiences and sketches to "create a real mint". With this character, Rowlandson can lay claim to creating the first regular cartoon character. All three tours involving Dr Syntax were accompanied by verse from William Combe during 1809—1815 for Ackermann’s Poetical Magazine.

 Rowlandson's work had a facility and nervous vitality that set it apart from his imitators - this quality triumphantly recreated here in ceramic.

A remarkable large jug.

Size:  9" (23cm) high x 8" (20cm) across handle.

Condition: Very good: no chips or cracks. Good restoration to end of spout with regilding to leaf vein below spout.