The Home Beautiful: The Granville Toby, 1985

Toby Jug
Rockingham Pottery, 1985
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This Toby Jug is a modern take on the Tobies which were popular in the Nineteenth Century. This character jug is one of a set of fourteen miniature Toby Jugs which were made to represent characters from the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. These are, essentially, based on an original series which was designed by the Burslem pottery firm of Shorter & Sons in 1940 when principals from the D'Oyly Carte Company were photographed in costume and in character. The Toby Jug pictured above depicts Sydney Granville (1880- 1959) as “Don Alhambra” in “The Gondoliers.” The original series featured large and small jugs as well as a line of wall plaques, cigarette boxes and ash trays. The Second World War halted production of the Burslem series which wasn’t actually released until 1949.

The series was resurrected by the Rockingham Pottery in 1985 who modeled their wares on the original moulds.

Object of the Day: A Trade Card for J.P. Coats Best Six Chord Thread

The flowers that bloom in the spring, Tra La,

Breathe promise of merry sunshine.

As we merrily dance and we sing, Tra La,

We welcome the hope that they bring, Tra La,

Of a Summer of roses and wine.

And, so, Coats’ Spool Cotton is always a Thing

As we welcome as flowers that bloom in the spring.

This colorful Victorian trade card depicts the character of Nanki Poo from Gilbert and Sullivan’s 1885 comic opera, “The Mikado.”  In the play, Nanki Poo is the son of the Mikado who disguises himself as a wandering minstrel (we all know the song) and who is in love with the beautiful “Yum-Yum.” 

When this card was printed (around 1885-90), “The Mikado” was extremely popular and manufacturers often referred to it to sell their wares—almost always without compensating the writers of the opera.  In this case, the J.P. Coats company is using Nanki Poo along with a very Gilbert and Sullivan-esque slogan to sell their Six Chord Thread.

The J.P. Coats Company was founded in 1802 and was a major producer of thread.  They merged with Clark Thread Company in 1952, becoming Coats and Clark.  Today, they operate as Coats, PLC.