Mintons Miniature Flower Basket or Potpourri. Pierced Lid. Marked and numbered on base. 

Size: 3 1/4 X 3 1/4 X 2 1/2 in. 

#3939 . 

Mintons was a major company in Staffordshire pottery, called “Europe’s leading ceramic factory during the Victorian Era,” an independent business from 1793 to 1968. The firm began when Thomas Minton (1765-1836) founded his pottery factory in Stoke-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, England as Thomas Minton and Sons, producing earthenware. He formed a partnership, Minton & Poulson, c.1796, with Joseph Poulson, who made bone china from 1798 onward in his new nearby china pottery workshop. When Poulson died in 1808 Minton carried on alone, using Poulson’s pottery for china until 1816, eventually building a new china pottery plant in 1824. No very early earthenware is marked, and perhaps a good deal of it was made for other potters. They became a leader in ceramic design, working in a number of different ceramic bodies, decorative techniques, and countless styles: Rococo shapes with Oriental motifs, Classical shapes with Medieval designs, and Art Nouveau borders were among the most popular concoctions. As well as pottery vessels and sculptures, the firm was a leading manufacturer of tiles and other architectural ceramics, producing work for both the Houses of Parliament and the United States Capitol Building. The family continued to control the business until the mid 20th Century. Mintons had the usual Staffordshire variety of company and trading names over the years, and the products of all periods are generally referred to as either “Minton,” as in “Minton china,” or “Mintons,” the mark used on many. Mintons Ltd was the company name from 1879 onwards. The main factory on London Road, Stoke-on-Trent was demolished in the 1990s, and the other factory, including office accommodation and a Minton Museum, was demolished in 2002 as part of consolidation within the Royal Doulton group. Royal Doulton was taken over in turn by the Waterford Wedgwood group in January of 2005. As a result of these changes, the ceramics collection formerly in the Minton Museum was partly dispersed to other museums and archives. The Minton Archive has been kept together with help from the Art Fund, being transferred to the City of Stoke-on-Trent in 2015. Their eclectic and vibrant Art Nouveau works are considered some of the finest English examples of the period, and are highly sought after by collectors.