Minton Moyr Smith Idylls of the King Arthur Tiles
Condition: Very good Price: £145 (approx $234) Ref: #03902 UK Special Delivery £153 EU Priority £157 US and World Priority £161 Currency Converter One very small and three minute rim chips, a couple of light scratches but most not easily seen and the tile is most brilliantly glazed. This the rarest of the scenes from this series.
• Style/technique: Pictorial multicolour print • Manufacturer: Mintons Ltd • Dimensions: 6" x 6" • Date: circa 1882	Tiles from the series 'The Idylls Of The King' which are poems about the legends of King Arthur. The poems are by Alfred, Lord Tennyson who was made Poet Laureate by Queen Victorian in 1850 and he served for 42 years. John Moyr Smith produced a series of 12 tile designs for Mintons China Works based on the poems, they were first manufactured around 1875. This an unusual if not rare colourway for the series, Sepia Monochrome as recorded in the catalogue, of course it should be multicolour, monochrome is used in place of multicolour throughout the catalogue. The first that I can recall seeing and indeed I spoke to a colleague another former antique fireplace trader who has a set of the more typical blue sky printed version and he remarked that he had not seen these previously. Another little oddity is that in the corners there is a pattern which differs on the five bought, maybe just the engraver adding a little touch of flair. The engraver was likely William Wise who is recorded as having engraved Shakespeare prints for Mintons. The sepia multicolour Shakespeare series are also rarely found and again to my mind the best, and indeed by far the best, colourway of the series. Versos clean but a little stained and slight remnants of mortar in the recesses, embossed Mintons etc, some nibbling for the original fitting. Yet more verso we see the mark embossed R IY, also new to me. This suggests to me that the biscuit was so marked especially for a particular retailer and as these were bought in Rochester, NY, possibly an american retailer. There are twelve tiles in the series, in the first colourway dark brown outline with blue sky the series is number 1465 this series is numer 1677 and would have been introduced about four years afterwards c.1879. Each scene is given a letter. A. The Lady of the Lake gives the sword to King Arthur B. Gareth entering the Town C. Gareth and Lynette on their journey, Lynette jeers at Gareth D. Pelleas first sees Etarre E. Pelleas finds Gawin and Etarre asleep in the Pavilion F. Enid and Limours G. Geraint slays Dorm H. Elaine's body in the Barge I. Vivien puts forth the charm on Merlin J. Tristram and Isolt K. King Arthur and Guinevere L. King Arthur in the Barge with the three Queens   *Geraint is an especially rare tile in any colorway. Most fittings required less than the full set fo twelve, ten in fireplaces and many washstands and almost any number, recently we bought seven colourway 1465 from a sideboard, the least attractive for whatever reasons are the rarer. Geraint illustrates a particularly bloodthirsty scene in contrast to the lovers scenes so understandably is less often found.
Condition: Excellent Price: £145 (approx $210) Ref: #03904 UK Special Delivery £153 EU Priority £157 US and World Priority £161 Currency Converter Four tiny rim chips, rubbing on the right edge border, a couple of light scratches but not easily seen and the tile is most brilliantly glazed.
Condition: Excellent Price: £155 (approx $224) Ref: #03905 UK Special Delivery £163 EU Priority £167 US and World Priority £171 Currency Converter Tiny chip near top left corner, light rubbing on the right edge border and some light scratches but not easily seen and the tile is most brilliantly glazed.
Different corner patterns we have seen
The image is full size at 72 dpi (about 430 pixels wide) in maximum quality JPEG format and on screen is about the size as it would be in real life at the same distance. A larger 120 dpi image also in maximum quality JPEG format can be forwarded by email if required. The image is a little oversize rather than cropped close to the edges so that the edges can easily be seen and any chips etc can be quickly spotted. Other marks described are usually not visible at all when the tile is viewed straight as one normally sees it and can only be seen with a critical eye when the tile is tilted to catch imperfections in reflected light. For more details of how we describe marks see Condition.

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