Wedgwood majolica Argenta Chrysanthemum cheese bell
Until about 30 years ago very few people had ever heard of the name Argenta.
It was in Maureen Batkin's book on Wedgwood, Wedgwood Ceramics 1846-1959, published in England in 1982 that the term first appeared. It described a particular kind of majolica color palette that became popular with the factory in the 1870s. In fact it was used by the company to distinguish majolica with this color palette from all the others. Originally described as Silver decoration in the Wedgwood pattern books, the name Argenta was eventually coined as the trade name.
Pieces in Argenta had ivory grounds with details in various pastel tones of taupe, yellow, rose and lilac. Some majolica patterns were specifically created with the color palette in mind so finding examples in other colors are nearly impossible to find. It was the company's response to changing tastes in Victorian England where the deeper colors of earlier majolica were starting to fall out of favor.
It must have been a great success because soon most patterns in the company's catalog were being glazed in this manner. Other companies soon started to copy Wedgwood's success and this majolica with ivory grounds and pastel decoration started to appear on both sides of the Atlantic.
Wedgwood majolica Palm cheese bell
Wedgwood majolica Argenta Palm cheese bell
Ironically, this majolica that was so popular in the 1870's and 1880's is looked down upon by many majolica collectors today. The reason is simple: most people buy majolica for the bright colors and Argenta is the least colorful of them all.
Wedgwood majolica Argenta Chrysanthemum oyster plate
Wedgwood majolica Chrysanthemum oyster plate
Wedgwood majolica Chrysanthemum oyster plate
It seems to me that this is rather unfair because the Argenta color palette is quite beautiful on its own. As an occasional piece in a more colorful collection it stands out for it's sophisticated beauty. In a group with other pieces of Argenta it has a clean, modern look that the more colorful majolica pieces lack.
Wedgwood majolica Argenta Ocean oyster plate
Wedgwood majolica Ocean oyster plate
Below I've borrowed photos of some pieces from our friends at Trilogy Antiques to show the differences between Argenta and conventionally glazed pieces.
Wedgwood majolica Argenta grape and strawberry plate
Wedgwood majolica grape and strawberry plate
Wedgwood majolica grape and strawberry plate
Wedgwood majolica Argenta cornbread plate
Wedgwood majolica cornbread plate
Wedgwood majolica Argenta Ocean salmon plate
Wedgwood majolica Ocean salmon plate
Wedgwood majolica Argenta Ocean plate
Wedgwood majolica Ocean plate
Argenta sells for less, generally, than more brightly colored majolica, but I think its a lovely color combination that fits in very well in most collEctions.
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