Andrew Coram’s Collection
Andrew Coram‘s Antique Shop at 86 Commercial St has long been my favourite window in London – it has all the mystery and romance that you might hope for in such a place. And recently, Andrew has put some of his personal collection of beautiful old china on sale, so I asked him to let me photograph his treasured pieces as a record before they all get sold and disappear.
1790s Creamware jug with the gravedigger scene from Hamlet
1790s Creamware jug, The Farmer’s Arms
Hand painted Pearlware jug with floral motif, 1794
Front of the same jug, inscribed “John Ivins, Hosmaston, 1794 – Fill your cups and banish grief, Laugh and worldly care despise, Sorrow ne’er will bring relief, Joy from drinking will arise, So pour this full and sup it up, And call for more to fill your cup.”
1790s, Prattware jug with hand-painted motifs
1825, hand-painted Pearlware jug
Front of the same jug
Painted lustreware jug, The Farmer’s Arms, 1833
Front of the same jug
Reverse of the same jug – “When this you see, Remember me, And keep me in your mind, Let all the world, Say what they will, Speak of me as you find.”
Early nineteenth century jug with transfers and hand-painted enamel decoration
1790s, blue and white jug, with the boy on a buffalo design, Leeds Pottery
1790s blue and white jug, possibly Leeds Pottery
Early nineteenth century Tam O’Shanter jug
Early nineteenth century Sunderland Lustreware jug
Reverse of the same jug
1720s Worcester teapot
1790s teapot
1790s teapot
1790s teapot
1780s teapot
1790s blue and white teapot with swan finial
Masonic Creamware mug
Front of the same mug
Early nineteenth century Lustreware christening mug
Side of the same mug
Early nineteenth century christening mug of Mary Ann Evans – is this George Eliot?
The side of the same mug
Andrew Coram’s window
Bedell Coram, 86 Commercial St, E1 6LY
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Thank you for sharing those wonderful pieces… I like them all… amazing to wonder about all the cups of tea poured, laughter and tears shared over those cups of tea!
The one with swan finial takes my breath away…
cheers
Deby
Having just looked around my own house to judge what I could not live without – turns out to be practically nothing – it was soothing to the soul to look upon these beautiful objects. The teapots are especially lyrical. Lovely start to a gorgeous summer day.
What a wonderful collection, and all those delicious inscriptions. Shall I go and pour myself a cooling draught – or a gentle cup of tea? Thank you both for collecting and recording these.
S. Berris
I had a set of dinner plates and two meat plates. Dark blue (almost navy) painted on plain white. I gave them to my daughter, but unfortunately a friend of hers put them into the dishwasher while helping to clear up (!) and the whole design broke up and I had to just discard them. But I had kept back a large and small meat plate, fortunately, so still have them.
No markings on the back, but pretty floral design with curly lines incorporating dots around the edges.
They belonged to my grandmother (born 1886) in Spitalfields, and I would suspect her parents before her as she was the youngest daughter. Her father had veg stalls in Spitalfields market, so they were local for a long time.
thanks for the inspiring images Gentle Author. What a great eye has Andrew(and you of course). So exciting to see all the wonderful juxtapositions , crammed designs , eccentric and vivid colouring …..a real treat.
I have a treasured collection of early souviner ware , lustre cups with melancholic sayings on them , probably my biggest inspiration for my drawings , oh how I would love some of Andrews treasures.
a wonderful collection, I always like the items with names and dates, it makes you wonder 🙂
This is a great shop – thanks for taking us further inside.
How beautiful, I am a great lover of pretty jugs and hand made pint pots. One of my most treasured things is a small flowery jug that was given to me by an elderly aunt as a wedding gift in the mid 80s. She barely had 2 pennies to rub together and was one of life’s eccentrics. Sadly she died a few years ago in her 90s, but when I look at her little jug she’s here again 🙂
What a lovely collection. Thank you for letting us see them! The jug with the birds deserves to have its chip restored – my mother did beautiful work, but sadly, she’s gone. Surely there are other good restorers in London? Looking at the picture of the 1790’s teapot, I can visualize my great-great grandparents sitting across the tea table, and Elizabeth smiling and pouring out the tea into the family’s cups. I do hope Andrew Coram’s shop will be there when next I cross the herring pond, as I’d love to visit!
What beautiful works. You never get to see things like this on Bargain Hunt 🙂
Thanks again for an interesting post