made in Glasgow

Miniature vase, with Melrose coat of arms

This porcelain miniature vase is decorated with the Melrose coat of arms. It was made for the souvenir market by the Nautilus Porcelain Company at the Possil Pottery in Glasgow and dates from between around 1900 and 1910.

The arms consist of a lamb's head, a mason's mell and a rose. The lamb's head has a bishop's crosier coming out of the top. These symbols are likely to be of ecclesiastical origin. The origin of the mell and the rose is unknown but may be a pun on the town's name.

Crested china became the most important type of British souvenir between 1900 and 1930. Its invention is credited to William Henry Goss (1833-1906), the owner of the Falcon Works in Stoke-on Trent. The main producer of crested china in Scotland was the Nautilus Porcelain Company, at the Possil Pottery in Glasgow. Run by the china merchants MacDougall & Sons, of 77-79 Buchanan Street, the company produced 'Nautilus' miniatures between around 1900 and 1910. The pottery closed in 1911.

Record details

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Online ID:	000-180-001-971-C
Image Rights Holder:	National Museums Scotland
Project:	0504: National Museums Scotland Part 2 Project description \| View all records in project
Ref:	National Museums Scotland H.1994.813
Date:	Between around 1900 and 1910
Material:	Porcelain. Inscription: [Melrose coat of arms (shield with stag, rose and bell)] Melrose; mark: Nautilus M Porcelain 10
Dimensions:	50 mm H x 30 mm W
What:	Vase, miniature / souvenir
Subject:
Who:	Nautilus Porcelain Company, Possil Park, Glasgow (Maker)
Where:	Scotland, Lanarkshire, Glasgow, Possil Park Scotland, Roxburghshire, Melrose
Event:
Description:	Porcelain vase with the coat of arms of Melrose, Roxburghshire, made by the Nautilus Porcelain Company, Possil Park, Glasgow
References:	Evans, G. Souvenirs From Roman Times to the Present Day. Edinburgh: NMS Publishing Ltd, 1999, pp 52-5. Porteous, A. The Town Council Seals of Scotland Historical, Legendary and Heraldic. Edinburgh and London: W & A K Johnston, MCMVI, p 213.
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