Collection of five Royal Worcester English porcelain bird models

The charming collection of five bird models was expertly made in England around 1950. The models were made by the Royal Worcester porcelain factory founded in 1751 and believed to be the second oldest English porcelain brand still operating today.

Each model depicts a different wild British bird. Wood warbler, gold crest, sparrow, hedge sparrow and nuthatch are expertly portrayed in the designs by Eva Soper (1901-1990). All birds are presented perching atop a branch or among greenery. The nuthatch is seen holding a yellow berry in his beak. The use of a pale colour palette is beautifully used highlighting the birds’ features whilst also creating a sweet and subtle aesthetic.

All models bear a maker’s mark on the reverse as well as the name of the bird depicted on them.

Eva Soper (1901-1991) designed and modelled all the bird models in this collection. She worked in a studio in a wildlife sanctuary founded by her father which allowed her to expertly portray the bird species in porcelain. She started her collaboration with the Royal Worcester porcelain factory in the late 1930s, initially only designing twelve wild British bird models. In 1941 she designed a further twelve models. All of them were popular among the public and were in continuous production until 1986.

The five wonderful bird models come from Henry Sandon’s (b.1928) collection, an English antiques expert and an authority in the field of the Royal Worcester porcelain.

The magnificent representation of the natural world in the delicate material emphasizes the high skill of their designer and makers, making them superb home décor pieces.

Provenance: Henry Sandon Study Collection

Largest: Height 9cm, width 8cm, depth 6cm
Smallest: Height 6cm, width 6cm, width 4cm