Posted 12 years ago
chinablue
(42 items)
This little dish is made from a B&Co (Bernardaud) Limoges blank, that was handpainted by Jeremiah Vokral at Pickard's. The Pickard mark is #7, 1912-c.1918. I have researched this piece and found that between the marks and his tenure at Pickard, that is was made between 1914 and 1918. It is in mint condition. The outer sides of the bowl are a low gloss eggshell color, the bottom is a glossy white. It measures 7 1/8 inches long by6 1/8 inches wide and stands 1 1/2 inches to the rim. I call this a handled bowl, but would like any input as to what it really is, what the value might be and if anyone knows the pattern name, if there is one. I have seen similar patterns with fruit but have yet to determine the pattern name. Thanks for any info!
UPDATE: Thanks to Pickardlvr, I now know the pattern name and listed this piece accordingly.
Hi, chinablue! Could this be a master berry bowl? Don't know the pattern name. Regards, miKKo
It could be. It beats anything I've come up with! I just call it "that Vokral bowl" If I ever find out the name of the pattern, do you think that would help? Thanks for taking the time to have a look and give some input! Much appreciated.
What a gorgeous piece...Breathtaking!!
Hi, chinablue! Most welcome!
I have only one piece of Limoges to my name. It is a master berry bowl - beautifully hand painted blackberries, which by the way, are sometimes represented in hand painted Limoges berry sets in a color that would look to us more like raspberries. I have just measured my master bowl and, discounting the broader edge of the two edges in the Ranson blank bowl, it is approx. 9 inches across, and 2 and 1/8 inches deep. When these were fashioned, portions were much smaller. I remember the first time I saw an antique Limoges ramekin. I thought how very little it would have held. Same with the berry dishes - rather small, though bigger than a ramekin, and very shallow.
Here's a link to a berry set currently being auctioned on ebay - has both master bowl and smaller bowls. Unlike mine, the decoration is not hand painted, but the measurements and proportions will help you.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1800s-HAVILAND-LIMOGES-VEGETABLE-6-BERRY-BOWLS-PINK-ROSES-PRINCESS-PATTERN-/160820796064?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2571aa9aa0
Regards, miKKo
That is really lovely, miKKo! And you're right, seeing it with the serving dishes, it does look the part! I know what you mean about the portion sizes. The dinner plates from some of my other old stuff are TINY compared to what you see today. Thanks for going to the trouble of measuring yours and looking that up for me. I appreciate it.
Hi, chinablue! No trouble at all - my pleasure!
I might add that I think that an excellent way to search for matching bowls on ebay would be to enter a search string like this: vintage hand painted Bernardaud Limoges berry bowl; or vintage hand painted B & Co. Limoges berry bowl; or the first string with 'antique' in lieu of 'vintage, second string with 'antique' in lieu of vintage. I suspect that the Pickard paper label will have worn off or have been removed from a great many such extant bowls, but of course, why not run the same strings, this time substituting Pickard for B & Co. or merely adding it? I've never seen a hand painted berry bowl on ebay that identified an actual pattern. They are referred to as "berry bowl" and sometimes in the manner of "berry bowl blackberries". As for the type of berry, could this be boysenberry, mulberry, raspberry, blackberry?
One modifier that will help weed out a large yield is 'hand painted'.
I looked at the signature. I am very ignorant of Limoges marks and the major painters/decorators, so I will take your word on the signature without considering that it might be another person's work.
I note in closing that the gilding is in superb condition! That would be an important factor in evaluating the commercial value of this item; another would be the Pickard label, I should think. I will note that if you can find the smaller bowls to this suite, the value increases dramatically. Ebay sales are soft, but I have seen these in an ensemble for about $600.00. I note that this figure is not recent. I haven’t been looking for a long time.
Regards, miKKo
The name of this Pckard pattern is "Deserted Garden." Variations of it were painted by many Pickard artists and on many different kinds of pieces.
miKKo! I am SO sorry that I missed your last post on this piece. Things, as you know, have been a little crazy, first with my daughter and her family being here and then my 'Logger' getting hurt. I so appreciate your information and help in trying to ID this pattern. It is definitely signed Vokral, but it is quite difficult to make out. I looked at all the pieces by him that I could find before I knew for certain. Forgive me for not acknowledging you sooner. I never ever want to miss one of your posts! Next time poke me with a stick or something! :-)
Pickardlvr, I can't thank you enough for putting a name to this pattern for me! Thanks for taking the time to comment and share your knowledge. My mystery is solved, thanks to you! :-)
Hi, chinablue. No one would EVER want to poke you with a stick! You are deeply gracious, kind, very intelligent, discerning, well educated, artistic, witty as all get out - no one would poke you with a stick EVER! However, you might be in danger of being struck by a falling timber - launched by a certain courteous gentleman in Southwestern Virginia, who shall go unnamed. So sorry he missed the Olympics this time 'round. After refining his lumber felling techniques for four more years, he might qualify for the lumber felling competition in 2016. Now, if he practices hard and diligently, YOU just might qualify for the 220 dash in 2016. I'll be cheering for Team Virginia! miKKo
I appreciate the kind words. Believe it or not, there are some that would LOVE to poke me with a stick.. but they're afraid to do it! *LOL* Like the old line 'don't poke the bear'. I tend to growl at times. ;-) Jim had a good laugh (and yes, it hurts when he laughs) over this post!
It's going to be a while, but he'll end up right back up there in the woods. We can only hope his technique improves. You'll have to be sure and watch for him in the 2016 games. We'll be easy to spot... He'll be the one in the body cast with the wife growling at him. *LOL*