Royal Doulton Coaching Days
The Royal Doulton Coaching Days series is an all time classic. It was designed by Victor Venner, was intorduced in 1905 and was in production until 1955. It has all the attributes that set it amongst the collectable giants. It was in production a long time, there were stacks of it produced in an almost limitless range of shapes, including both Bone China and Earthen Ware.
It was produced in four background styles, or colour-ways. The standard background is yellow & brown, the yellow forms the ground and a strip of brown shading is used to indicate the bush in the background. This ground was quickly applied with an air brush, then I believe the transfer would have been applied over the top. This ground is used on both bone china and earthen ware.
Coaching Days rack Plate; Yellow Ground; dated January 1937
The blue sky ground is hard to find, most often it is on a bone china base, but there are some 10.5" rack plates on an earthen ware base. This ground is also applied by air brush, only with more detail; the road is a sandy brown with shading to give a suggestion of shadows under the characters, horses and the coach. The foreground is a green forming a green verge to the side of the road and giving the scene more depth. The bush behind the coach is green with shading to add depth and the sky is a summer blue with billowing clouds.
Coaching Days Bone China Rack Plate; Blue Sky; pattern number E.2768; dated July 1926
The “Snow Ground” is rare and appears on both earthern ware and a bone china base. The true snow ground takes two forms, in one the horse and coach is struggling through a blizzard, sometimes the artist has applied so much falling snow that it almost appears to be in white out conditions. In the second form of the snow scene the horses, coach and characters appear in snow covered back ground, there is often colour in the sky suggesting either evening or sun shine. The background bush is in the grays and brown of winter. There coach forms deep wheel ruts in the snow and the men's foot prints are clearly visible in the snow.
Coaching Days Earthern Ware Rack Plate; Snow Scene; D2682
From time to time I have seen examples of Snow Ground put forward that I do not feel that these are true snow ground examples. On the bone china examples there is definition to the snow, where on these earthen ware examples there is no definition, it is my belief that these are just production variation where less colour has been applied, as with this biscuit barrel below.
The forth background style is extremely rare. The scene is depicted the full flush of a glorious of sunset. There is a lot of detail to the back ground, I believe that this would version would have been also done by air brush, but it would have been a very slow and laborious task. I have only seen an occasional example of the sunset colour-way and to date I have never owned a piece. I must thank the collector who supplied me with this photo.
 |  |
Coaching Days Bone China Vase Sunset Colours; E3407
My favorite scene is the Royal Mail Coach pursued by armed and masked highway men. I love the goose and the hare hanging from the back of the coach, at the risk of being ridiculous, could you imagine a bus on an interstate run pulling into a capital city Bus terminal with an Emu and a Kangaroo hanging from the back
.
Dating Coaching Days
This series was in production for 50 years, so there are range of tools we can use to determine an exact production date or at least the production era. An impressed date code give us the month and the year and on bone china it some times even gives the exact day. The small numeral just to the left of the crown in the maker’s mark gives us the year, add the number to 27 and you have the year. Mark below left – note the 15 beside the crown – denotes 1942. Also not the large “A” to the right of the crown – this was introduced by British Government in 1942 and it is to do with War time restrictions, I am not sure the exact year it was phased out, but circa 1952”.
The third mark was in use from 1902 until 1932.
Pattern numbers are very useful for setting the date when a pattern was first produced, “D” pattern numbers are for Earthen Ware, “E” pattern numbers are for Bone China :-
D.2356 was introduced circa 1905
D.2579 “ ”1906
D.2682 “ ”1906
D.2716 “ ”1906
D.3474 “ ”1911
D.4190 “ ”1921
D.4891 “ ”1929
E.2768 “ ”1905
E.3407 “ ”1905
E.3804 “ ”1906
E.5082 “ ”1909
E.5083 “ ”1909
The Coaching Days series was drawn by Victor Venner, it was introducedin 1905 and it was withdrawn from production in 1955. On page 52 of volume 2 of Royal Doulton Series Ware; Louise Irvine describes 20 scenes in this series:-
1. “Coach being harnessed, attendant bringing up a pair of horses”.
2. “Driver talking to serving wench”.
3. “Youth holding a front pair of horses”.
4. “Innkeeper talking to drivers, attendants boarding.”
R.D. Coaching Days Blue Sky Plate; D.2682
I have only ever seen two examples of scene 4 on the Blue Sky ground.
Please note the gent to right of the coach choofing on a pipe. This is the only time I have seen this guy, does anybody else have an exampe of this scene or has anybody ever seen him in any other scenes?
5. “Group of passengers”.
6. “Horn sounding, coach departing, watched by solitary man”.
Blue Sky Example - dated February 1907 - D2682
7. “Driver talking to passengers, attendants loading”.
The scene above is only a partial, it comes off a biscuit barrel and I could not get the front 2 horese in the frame because of the curve of the barrel.
Blue Sky Example - Bone China - E2768 - October 1906
8. “Family waving farewell”.
9. “Man opening gate for the coach”.
10. “Tightening the harness, goose and hare hanging from the coach”.
Snow Ground Example of scene 10; D.2682
11. “Unscheduled stop, trouble with lame horses”.
Blue Sky Example of scene 11; E.2768; dated July 1926
12. “Coach going up hill, attendants walking”.
The rare Sunset coloured ground, this example came off a bone china vase with the pattern number E3407
13. “Struggling through the snow, extra horses”.
14. “Coach pursued by highwaymen”.
15. “Boxes being handed to driver.”
Blue Sky Example
Image courtesy of David Hamilton
This image came off an Earthern Ware rack plate with the pattern number D2682, it was dated Febuary 1907. This is the first time I have ever seen the character sitting on the baggage.
16. “Man with trunk, coach approaching through the snow.”
17. “Coach stopped, broken harness.”
18. “Passenger sitting on a trunk, another beside.”
19. “Group of passengers, horn sounding.”
20. “Gig arriving with passengers”
There are 2 different birch trees and 2 birch coppice’s that appear on this series, these I have named and am also adding to the list of scenes:–
21. “Winter Birch.”
22. “Autumn Birch”
23. "Birch Coppice"
Back view of coaching days Rocket Jug
24. "Birch Coppice, trunks only"
Back view of Coaching Days Salad Bowl; pattern number D.2716; production era 1932 - 1942