Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, (reigning 1837 - 1901) is credited with introducing the Christmas Tree into the UK and from the late 1840s the Christmas Festivities here began to assume a different style. The designs with which we are so familiar today were very new at this time but the combination of holly, robins, mistletoe and snow quickly became a much-loved and indispensable part of British tradition at Christmas. Spode was probably one of the first ceramic manufacturers to follow these new trends producing patterns using holly borders entwined with mistletoe and seasonal flowers on serving platters as well as on toilet wares such as ewers and basins. The earliest design in the archive dates from about 1811. Pattern number 1575 shows a holly border and a little later, in about 1828, a tile with pattern number B195 is recorded decorated with a border of holly. Many more patterns with a Christmas/New Year theme begin to be recorded in the pattern books from the late 1840s. Patterns begin to appear in the style with which we are familiar today. An example of one of the early Christmas patterns is a ewer and basin with an embossed holly pattern which was registered as a design with the British Patent Office on 6th December 1849 with registered number 64739. Four designs with numbers 8295, D579, D2033 and D2035 all using the holly motif were exhibited at the 1862 International Exhibition and illustrated in the Art Journal Catalogue. Another design after a painting by Harrison Weir of a robin standing on a snow-covered branch was produced in about 1861. The print of this centre had appeared in the Illustrated London News on December 5th 1858. Nearly 100 designs have been found in the pattern books so far from 1848 to 1938 with patterns on tableware, giftware, ornamental ware, toilet ware and tiles. One of the most famous of Spode patterns is Christmas Tree introduced in 1938 and details of this pattern and also of a more recent introduction, Christmas Rose, are available from the Spode Museum on request.

top

The History of Spode ------------------- The Willow Story Josiah Spode The Spode Museum Blue Printed Earthenware Fine Bone China Matching Patterns Finding out about ware The Spode Society The Spode FAQ Bibliography Pattern Histories