Late last year I did what has proven to be a popular post on some of the appalling Minton reproductions available in the market. George Jones is also unfortunately the victim of equally bad majolica reproductions, perhaps more so than Minton. Some are worse than others of course but they all have been potted with one motive: to fraudulently separate you from your money.
Here I’ve posted these George Jones reproductions followed by the original antiques. Many of these I have posted before but I thought it might be instructive to collect them into one post. Shown side by side it allows you to see the difference in quality between the poorly made reproductions and the original antique.
Incidentally, with only one exception all of these shown were found online being sold as authentic George Jones majolica. Buyer beware!
Reproduction palm grape dish
George Joness majolica Palm grape dish
Reproduction dresser tray
George Jones majolica dresser tray
Reproduction grape server made by the Philippine company Zrike
George Jones majolica grape server
Reproduction cheese bell. This was the first iteration
of the Jones fence cheese bell.
Reproduction cheese bell. This was the second attempt at copying
the Jones fence cheese bell
The third reproduction fence cheese bell
George Jones majolica fence Stilton cheese dish
Reproduction cheese bell
George Jones majolica basket low cheese bell
Reproduction cheese bell. Of those shown on this post, this was
the only one being sold as a reproduction
George Jones majolica basket Stilton cheese bell
Reproduction tall cheese bell
George Jones majolica Rustic Stilton cheese bell
Reproduction low cheese bell
George Jones majolica Rustic low cheese bell
Reproduction cow finial cheese bell
George Jones majolica cow finial Stilton cheese bell
Reproduction Punch bowl
George Jones majolica Punch bowl
Reproduction pineapple tea kettle
George Jones majolica Pineapple tea kettle
Reproduction bird serving dish
George Jones majolica bird serving dish
George Jones majolica strawberry server
Reproduction sardine box
George Jones majolica sardine box
Reproduction squirrel nut dish
George Jones majolica squirrel nut dish
Reproduction sphinx center
George Jones majolica sphinx center
Reproduction bird serving dish
Jones majolica bird serving dish
Reproduction lotus pitcher
George Jones majolica Lotus jug
Reproduction pitcher
George Jones majolica bird nest pitcher
Reproduction monkey creamer
George Jones majolica monkey creamer
Reproduction monkey handled teapot
George Jones majolica monkey handled teapot
Reproduction nut serving dish
George Jones majolica nut serving dish
Reproduction compote
George Jones majolica Europe compote
Reproduction dog compote
George Jones majolica dog compote
There is also a reproduction of the Full Nest game dish
George Jones majolica Empty Nest game dish.
Reproduction oyster plate
George Jones majolica oyster plate
Reproduction fish tureen, marked MINTON
George Jones majolica fish tureen
Reproduction calla lily jardiniere
George Jones majolica calla lily jardiniere
On occasion these have fake marks on the base like this piece with a blank English Registration mark and Jones crescent.
Fake majolica English Registration and GJ crescent marks
The problem with many of these things is that more often than not they are sold anonymously through auctions or through the internet so returns are impossible. That is why it is best to be educated about what is available in the marketplace so you can make intelligent buying decisions.
One caveat here; the reproductions shown do not include antique reproductions from other British or American potteries. Jones majolica was copied by several potters working in the 19th century contemporarily to the Trent Pottery. These shown here were all made in the past twenty years.
Now, I should make some allowance for dealers who sell these pieces as antique without knowing any better. Majolica is a specialized collecting area so it’s unrealistic to think that all dealers are aware of the differences between an antique piece of majolica and a reproduction. Buying from a reputable dealer conscious of their reputation will always guarantee that they will accept a return of a misrepresented piece.
For information on identifying true George Jones majolica see my post on George Jones.
