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Discover Mid-America - June 2008
Separating the legend of
Fitzhugh porcelain from fact
If you are a beginning collector with a penchant for Chinese export porcelain, the name Fitzhugh is important. While Fitzhugh is an English name, it is also the pattern name for some very expensive Chinese export porcelain. Among the pattern’s claim to fame is its rarity as one of the most expensive examples of porcelain exported from China (1775-1850).
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| Blue and white Fitzhugh hot water plate (photo courtesy Kahn Fine Antiques, Chatham, MA) |
There are several theories as to how the name Fitzhugh became a pattern name for porcelain made in China. One legend is that the porcelain was ordered by an American sea captain by the name of Fitzhugh who like the design. Another, that it was first made for the English Fitzhugh family. Or, that it is the mispronunciation of the Chinese city of Foochow.
Consider this, that Thomas Fitzhugh was the president of the select committee of supercargoes at Canton in the 1780s. And, that the family shipped vast quantities of Chinese porcelain to England.
CLUES
Basically, the Fitzhugh pattern can be recognized by a diapered border and a central medallion surround by four panel decorations. These represent Chinese symbols of the philosophy of lie and the arts. While the designs are usually one color, the exception is the use of the American Eagle and shield in red, white and blue as a central medallion. Borders were in the various colors used in the pattern; blue (the most common), orange, green, sepia, mulberry, yellow, black and gold. Borders of stylized butterflies date from 1785 and are among the rarest. Other motifs included pomegranates, Buddha’s hand and diaper forms.
Fitzhugh, like other Chinese export patterns, was never signed. So, if you are offered a piece having a square, pseudo-Chinese mark in red, with a running “S” beside it, you’ve found a very desirable fake. These pieces were made in France in the 19th century by Emile Samson, a famous copyist. Nowadays, it has collectors and a value all its own. The pattern was also adapted by Caughley and Coalport in England.
Before you get all excited about the Fitzhugh plate you discovered on a dusty antiques shop shelf, remember it has never stopped being reproduced. During the 1976 American Bicentennial, bowls decorated in green, orange and blue Fitzhugh designs, along with some American eagle medallions, were popular repros. Somewhere along the way they lost their proper import stickers saying “made in Hong Kong. One way to tell the old from new: the Hong Kong copies are white, compared to authentic antiques.
If you have the opportunity do a hands on of what is supposedly an authentic piece.
Anne Gilbert has been self-syndicating the ANTIQUE DETECTIVE to such papers as the Chicago Sun Times and the Miami Herald since 1983. She has authored nine books on antiques, collectibles and art and appeared on national TV. She has done appraisals for museums and private individuals.
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