Staffordshire Figures: Faith, Fame and Popular Taste
- Jun 25
- 2 min read
One of the pleasures of dealing in antiques is that objects often lead one into unexpected areas of history. A recent example is this rare pair of Staffordshire pottery figures, I discovered recently, depicting the American evangelists Dwight Lyman Moody and Ira David Sankey. I must confess that I knew little about either figure until the objects themselves prompted a little research — which is, of course, part of the joy of the antiques world.
Staffordshire figures have a particular charm because they sit at the meeting point of art, craft and popular culture. Produced in large numbers from the late eighteenth century onwards, they brought notable people, moral stories, political events, theatrical characters, royalty, animals, clergy and comic scenes into ordinary homes. They were decorative, accessible and often wonderfully direct in their appeal. In many ways, they were the visual popular culture of their day.
Religious subjects formed an important part of this tradition. Some figures were devotional or morally instructive; others reflected the public fascination with preachers, reformers and religious movements. In the case of Moody and Sankey, the figures commemorate two immensely influential figures in nineteenth-century American evangelical revivalism. Moody was the preacher; Sankey, his musical partner, became famous for the hymns and gospel songs that formed such a powerful part of their mission. Together they toured America and Britain, drawing enormous crowds and leaving a lasting mark on Protestant religious life.
What makes this pair especially appealing is that the two figures belong together. Moody and Sankey’s careers were so closely linked that to separate them would be to lose much of the story. As Staffordshire figures, they are not simply portraits of two individuals, but reminders of a moment when religious revival, popular celebrity and domestic ornament all came together.
On a lighter note, but still within the religious theme, I was also pleased to find an amusing group known as The Vicar and Moses. Here the tone is rather different: the vicar appears to be in a distinctly sorry state, perhaps after rather too much attention to his pastoral duties at the local pub. This is a rare Ralph Wood pottery group, made in Staffordshire circa 1785, and it shows another side of the Staffordshire tradition — humorous, observant and gently satirical.
That range is part of the enduring appeal of Staffordshire pottery. It can be serious, moral, commemorative, comic or affectionate, sometimes all at once. These figures are not grand religious artefacts in the formal sense, but they are vivid records of how faith, personality and social life were understood and represented in the home.
For me, that is what makes them so enjoyable. Religious objects need not always be solemn. They can also be lively, curious, characterful and fun — and Staffordshire pottery captures that beautifully.
