The subject of British art pottery miniatures occurred to me after attending the sale of the Richard Wright Collection at Skinners of Boston, Massachusetts. Wright was a well-known collector and dealer in the United States, who, after an opportune buying trip to England, discovered British art pottery and became hooked.
Wright's collection covered many areas of the decorative arts but it reminded me of another American collection - that of Harriman Judd; this was one of the largest private collections of British art pottery and was sold by Sotheby's in 2001. Within this collection, the core of which was devoted to Doulton Lambeth and Martin Brothers wares, were numerous subsidiary collections of varying strengths, one of which was a large group of quite rare miniature wares. Richard Wright similarly had several fine miniatures amongst his pieces.

A group of miniature Ruskin Pottery wares, the tallest 1¾in., £300-£400. The image tells its own story. (Woolley and Wallis Auctioneers, Salisbury)

Ceramic miniatures of various forms are widely collected, including micro or doll's house miniatures. The particular type of pottery to be looked at here, however, is the work of the British art potteries. During the late 19th and early 20th century, collecting miniatures was very popular and numerous new buyers were attracted to the manufacturers producing them.
It would be a brave man who tried to pinpoint the reasons for developing a collection of miniatures. In the 18th century the creation of such a 'private' collection might have been born out of a gentleman's interest or curiosity in seeking further knowledge and appreciation of art and culture, specifically of the Europe of classical antiquity and the Renaissance. Indeed, many national museums developed out of such collections in order to make accessible to those in Britain some of the treasures of the ancient world. A gentleman's home of the period would have a small private study or 'museum' collection of objects or curiosities (often of small size) for contemplation and understanding.
A reason for manufacturers to produce miniatures is that they would have been relatively easy to sell in comparison to some of the more expensive full-scale wares which were generally out of reach of all but the wealthy. This bears closer scrutiny with contemporary activity in the fine arts, as noted in the Magazine of Arts of 1889: 'What the various methods of engraving have done for the popularisation of painting will be done before very long for sculpture by the reproductions in bronze and on a small scale of the works by modem artists ... Mr. Woolner has had his bust of Mr. Gladstone reproduced, and Mr. Conrad Dressier his bust of Mr. Ruskin ... This we are delighted to see. There is no reason why reductions in bronze of statues by eminent sculptors should not be as eagerly sought after and highly prized as etchings of famous pictures ... But with a wide public to appeal to, the copyrights of his works will have a value they never had before.'
Some parameters need to be set in order to fully appreciate the subject of ceramic miniatures, and some myths should be dispelled. Miniatures were not made, in the main, as travellers' samples nor were they meant to be used as doll's house wares (such pieces were usually a great deal smaller). Miniatures in British art pottery were deliberately made as exquisite gems in their own right, usually involving a greater degree of time to make and decorate each object, pro rata, than full-sized versions. The decoration of such small wares was a great deal more intricate than larger wares, requiring the highest degree of skill and patience. Getting the proportions right, whether hand thrown or cast must have caused many anguished moments, especially when the fingers that made them were more used to making larger wares. When is something 'miniature' as opposed to 'small'? Can everything under a certain height or width be considered miniature? Nothing is ever hard and fast, but there are certain criteria that have to be taken into account. The shape and its proportions are of the utmost importance and a miniature piece should be seen to have been conceived and made deliberately to appear full-size if scaled up exactly. Necessarily the decoration also needs to be in proportion with the shape and size and, again, something that could be seen on a scaled-up full-size piece, although here it should be noted that if such decoration was seen on a full-size piece it would have additional features and detail.