Mauchline Ware: A Collector's Guide by David Trachtenberg & Thomas Keith

Table of Contents

'Scottish white wood products' and 'Scottish fancy goods' are two of the many terms once used to describe what has now come to be known as Mauchline Ware. From 1830 to 1930, the souvenir woodware industry which flourished in the small Scottish town of Mauchline was fueled by the Victorian and Edwardian passion for travel. Mauchline Ware souvenirs were produced for an endless variety of activities such as sewing, smoking, reading and writing, in every shape imaginable and the finishes included simple black transfer scenes on sycamore, sea shell, floral and fern patterns, sophisticated tartan designs and many others.

This book records the unusual array of shapes, sizes and finishes of Mauchline Ware; documents the history of its manufacture and distribution; investigates Mauchline Ware's relationship to Victorian manners and interests; covers the important connection between Scotland's national poet Robert Burns and Mauchline Ware and details the wide variety of collecting categories and associated interests. It is lavishly illustrated with photographs of the striking black transfers, the authentic Scottish clan tartans adorning Tartan Ware, the fossil-like botanical Fern Ware finish together with hundreds of examples of items of Mauchline Ware from private and museum collections in Scotland, England and the United States.

The book contains a greater number of hitherto unpublished close-up photographs of transfer views, different shaped pieces and diverse finishes than have ever been collected together in a single publication. It is also the first book to provide detailed coverage of American, Canadian and other world views from outside the United Kingdom. The book concludes with a number of unique and exhaustive appendices, including a Price Guide, which will provide invaluable reference material for collectors and dealers alike.