~ Victorian Staffordshire Spill Vase Figural Group of Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf, c.1850–1865 ~
A richly hand-painted Victorian Staffordshire flatback spill vase figural group depicting the fairy tale subject of Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf. Little Red Riding Hood is modelled seated beside a naturalistically rendered hollow tree trunk — the spill vase — wearing a vivid orange-red hooded cape over a white spotted dress with blue hem detail, and holding a yellow basket of pink flowers. The wolf crouches attentively at her feet to the left, modelled in a warm red-brown with good anatomical detail; a spray of green foliage grows beside him. The tree trunk, mottled in rich brown and green, rises to form the open spill vase, lined in orange-red, with gnarled branch extensions framing the composition. The whole is raised on a moulded naturalistic mound in green and brown, standing on a flat oval white plinth base. The rear is the typical undecorated white flatback. The base is unglazed and unmarked. Approximate height 26 cm; width approximately 15 cm.
~ Historical Context ~
Little Red Riding Hood is one of the most enduring European fairy tale subjects, derived from Charles Perrault's French collection of 1697 and widely circulated in English translation from 1729. A spill vase figure of this type representing Little Red Riding Hood meeting the wolf in the woods was held by the Victoria and Albert Museum, and was catalogued as Staffordshire earthenware of circa 1850; the V&A noted the figure may have been produced due to the tale's popularity, or in connection with a burlesque dramatisation of the story at the Adelphi Theatre around that date.
The spill vase format was a practical as well as decorative object in the Victorian household. Spill vases held wax tapers — thin wooden sticks used in the 19th century for lighting fires and candles — and the hollow tree trunk form, with the spills inserted to resemble branches, was among the most popular formats for Staffordshire figural spill vases of the 1850s and 1860s. The pairing of a fairy tale subject with the spill vase form gave the Staffordshire potteries a readymade narrative image of a girl in a wood beside a tree, making Red Riding Hood a particularly well-suited subject. This example, with its very vivid palette and finely detailed figure, is consistent with production in the earlier, higher-quality phase of the subject's manufacture, c.1850–1865.
~ Condition ~
This is the best condition piece in the current group, and presents in genuinely very good condition throughout.
Front and composition: Excellent. The vivid orange cape, white spotted dress, red-brown wolf, green foliage and tree bark are all well-retained with strong, unfaded colour. No flaking, rubbing or loss to the enamel decoration is apparent from examination of the photographs.
Face (Image 6): Well-painted with clear, fine features. Good condition.
Tree trunk spill vase (Images 1 & 6): The hollow is intact and lined in a rich orange-red glaze; the rim is complete with no chips or losses visible.
Branch extensions and moulded details: Appear intact. Very minor possible tip wear to the upper left branch (image 4), but this is extremely minor and consistent with age.
Rear (Images 3 & 4): Plain white undecorated flatback. A small integral loop/handle is visible on the tree trunk — this is a design feature, not damage. No cracks or chips apparent.
Base (Image 7): The unglazed oval base is intact with no cracks visible. Age-related grime to the foot rim. A yellow stain (consistent with an old price label remnant) is present on the base surface — this may clean.
Buyers are encouraged to review all images carefully before purchasing.
