Bronze Age Gold from Wales

Vase, part of a garniture, probably missing lid, pearl-glazed earthenware, the glaze very patchy under foot, Chinese baluster form, slightly waisted above the foot and tapering to a collar neck, decorated in the Chinese style: all over ground pattern of underglaze blue and gilt outline scales, the centre of each scale painted with an iron red motif; the front of the vase reserved with a blue and gilt scrolled-edged cartouche painted in green, yellow, red brown and pink with with a Chinoiserie scene of two men, one (right), in yellow, with a parrot perched on his left hand, the other (left) seated on verandah steps, a pagoda like building to the right, panels of fret etc to the left; underglaze blue and gilt cartouche to the reverse frilled at either end, painted in iron red and gilt with a peony; gilt rim and line above foot; iron-red border pattern below rim of a chain of ovals on a hatched ground within narrow lines.

These are the only known examples of oriental figure decoration attributed to the ceramic painter Thomas Pardoe. They are possibly part of a larger garniture of five vases and may have originally had covers.