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When David Haviland began the Haviland China Dynasty, he understood art very well.

His china art was designed to appeal to American & British taste. Until the time Japanese influence began to change the china art away from simple flower imbelishments, the art was usually quite simple. Japonism, as the phrase was coined, combined the linear art of asian culture with busier florals of the east. As time progressed, Haviland embraced the artists from the impressionist movement, japonism, and France also loved Haviland art.

The Haviland Dynasty created a name easily recognized out of the Limoges china era. David Haviland is considered partly responsible for the turning point of the Limoges porcelain industry occurring in the mid to late 1800s. He opened his own decorating studio where artists decorated china. He made the decorating workshops part of his factory. The basic difference between Haviland porcelain and the porcelain made by other Limoges companies are not in the quality of the porcelain, but in the types of articles manufactured and the type of decorating employed. These pieces were most often vividly decorated, and frequently hand - painted, with floral, fruit, and figural scenic themes. Pieces were often elaborately fashioned and embellished with gold. She explains that the more elaborate pieces with elaborate gold work are painted by hand. ~ From the Pages 13 & 14 Collector's Encyclopedia of Limoges Porcelain. Third Edition. Mary Frank Gaston (Copyrighted in 2000).

The Haviland Dynasty encouraged variety it sold, it reflected originality and emphasized the wonderful art, botanicals and gold work. In 1870's, lithographic presses were invented and the production of china increased 4 times. Some people call this a transfer process, I would say this is having an art pattern that is then hand painted. Antique Staffordshire (highly beautiful, collectible and expensive) is a transfer process, but doesn't see the hand painting to fill it botanicals or foliage, the placement of the pattern doesn't change.

 These designs were reflected in the variety of subject matter along with balance of color & form. In comparing the same design on two plates of the same set, seldom are they exactly alike. This is because the artisan applying the transfers did not alway place them exactly the same on each piece." Some of the variety in the transfer would be: the artisan working on the plate determined the placement of the art pattern or transfer, the art pattern would have differences in the color of the flower, the flower type, the outline color used, the foliage and its placement. The plate would continue to have variety other than art pattern, the plate could have different use of the Schleiger identified blank ~ the plates shape~ the color applied to the edge of the plate border or the hand painted gold work applied. Variety was something the Haviland Dynasty loved. Some popular patterns have more variety in them than the alphabet.

One of the Haviland books records Haviland employing 1200 artists and they could produce 6 plates a day. Haviland encouraged artistic freedom and creativity.  On page 33 of Nora Travis' book "The Age of Elegance", she explains factories today still rely on the human touch to produce the final product: gold trim & handles painted by hand with the artist's touch. (Published in 1997).

Many popular art patterns vary more than the alphabet.

For example, Schleiger 146, Old Apple Blossom (later re-created by Theodore Haviland's descendants in New York and decorated by machine) has so many variables that the alphabet is filled, so hyphens and numbers are used.

The variations include:  1. color: in the flower, in the foliage, the delicate outline color. 2. The shape of the china ~ referred to as the ranson blank or Schleiger. 3. The art pattern used in the gold work~ also referred to as the Schleiger.  In the top photo of the individual oyster sets, the background plate is Schleiger 133 and refers to the columns of gold trim, called St. Germaine.  In this photo of the two Old Apple Blossom platters,  art work Schleiger 146, the ranson blank is a Schleiger 118 for the scalloped swooping gold.

It is rare for older Haviland to use names instead of numbers.  Some of the rare name exceptions are: Drop Rose ~ Schleiger 55 (with look-alike Sch 496), Baltimore Rose ~ Schleiger 1151 (in the photo), Harrison Rose ~ Schleiger 150 (in green or pink & yellow), Christmas Rose, Old Apple Blossom ~ Schleiger 146 and the gold trim, Schleiger 133~ St. Germaine. Haviland New York uses names in their machine china & usually there is a correspondingly old pattern. Old Apple Blossom ~Schleiger 146 and Apple Blossom. Schleiger 1240 & Charone. Old Autumn Leaf~Schleiger 60 and the new.  This is Baltimore Rose, variation known as P. Perhaps it is P because the Roses are almost white with pink and green shades in the daylight and definitely a pale pink by dinner light.

There are over 30,000 Haviland patterns; Arlene Schleiger identified well over 1,000 patterns and named them Schleiger numbers. Nora Travis does a wonderful work photographing the china and discussing the evolution of Haviland in her books. Margaret Head worked on identifying many Charles Field Haviland pieces and they are referred to as Head numbers.

Haviland is collected for the art, the hard durability of the pristine china clay, for the historical significance and the absolute perfection not really obtained by the machine china of today. Haviland collectors collect by beauty, entire sets, (homeowners insurance is friendlier to entire sets, with a receipt) rare mark and rare table accessories.

Rare Table Accessories tend to increase in value faster than regular table service:

The basic difference between Haviland porcelain and the porcelain made by other Limoges companies are not in the quality of the porcelain, but in the types of articles manufactured and the type of decorating employed. These pieces were most often vividly decorated, and frequently hand - painted, with floral, fruit, and figural scenic themes. Pieces were often elaborately fashioned and embellished with gold. More elaborate pieces with elaborate gold work are painted by hand.

These table accessories are rare, not the regular table service. Although cataloged, photographed and detailed in the Antiques Limoges and Haviland books, they are not easy to find in today's markets.

Not only are rare table accessories physical evidence of the past, the rare table accessories are symbols of the past having significant differences in custom from today.  The Victorian Era had the time and interest in meals with 12 courses using intricate china for each specific course.

For example, the rare individual oyster set photographed above. Early Colonial settlers would eat oysters by the gross (144), rather than by the dozen, with per capita consumption at 10 bushels per year. Abraham Lincoln used to throw parties at his home in Illinois where nothing but oysters was served. In an era with that intense an interest in oysters, it was probably very good manners to at least have the table sport one oyster per person.

Or a rare Master Salt in Schleiger 86, The Chrysanthemum art pattern. Because dinner guests were seated based on their rank, anyone placed “above the salt” (the host-side of the salt cellar) was deemed a person of consequence. By the late 17th century small but elaborate silver salt dishes were often placed by each diner’s place setting in upper-class homes as a way to demonstrate the host’s status and wealth.

Rare Mark

The older Haviland is more expensive and rare due to the fragile nature of china.   A friend of mine has an entire set of Haviland from the 1870's; it is incredibly ornate with delicate, intricate gold work, and the gold marks are very definitely hand painted and not in perfect sequence, even if it isn't apparent without examination. Many times the rare mark is another method of creativity; Haviland rarely has ribbons in the art work, but almost all the ribbon art patterns have the rare ribbon or "Legion of Honor" mark.  Or if the piece uses ribbon handles on the teacups and tureens, the ribbon mark is there.

    A ribbon holiday variation on Autumn Leaf, Schleiger 60

Email is a wonderful thing, I am happy to answer questions about items in my shop! Unfortunately, due to time constraints and because china must be held to be identified and appraised, I refer people to the larger china shops with a staff for identification and appraisal.

If this guide has been helpful to you, please take the time to vote. THANK YOU FOR LOOKING! 

There are many ways to collect Haviland, but a thing of beauty is a joy forever.