Kantjes pottery from Gouda: The Difference Between P- and NP-Decor

Antique Gouda pottery with a white background and pastel-coloured decorations are immensely popular among collectors worldwide. This type of Dutch polychrome pottery is also called ‘kantjes pottery’, referring to the fine lines and dots in the decorations. This article discusses the creation of these P- and NP-decors, the differences between the decors, how to date them, and who the most prominent ‘kantjes’ pottery painters were.

When thinking of antique Gouda pottery, one quickly thinks of decorative earthenware with dark colours and glossy glaze. However, between 1902 and 1920, the Gouda pottery factory Zuid-Holland (PZH) also produced a substantial amount of light-coloured pottery: objects with pastel-coloured paintings on white biscuit. This type of pottery is referred to by different names: P-decor, NP-decor, or ‘Kantjes decor’. ‘Kantjes’ can be translated to ‘little lace’ and owes its name to the fact that the fine lines and dots – that make up the decorations – look like lace. This type of decorative pottery is considered the pinnacle of pottery production from Gouda by many collectors.

The Origin of Kantjes pottery

This story does not begin in the city of Gouda, but in The Hague. In 1899, the Rozenburg factory was working on a new type of ceramics that was fired at higher temperatures. The result would be first shown to a large international audience at the World Exhibition in Paris in April 1900. Rozenburg’s porcelain was cream-white, extremely thin, almost transparent and painted with Art Nouveau style decors inspired by Japanese prints and French naturalistic style books. This innovation was named: eggshell porcelain.

At the world exhibition in Paris, eggshell porcelain was a hit. Various museums purchased pieces, as did prominent noble families and celebrities. Other ceramics factories also praised the technical achievements, production techniques, and decorations that seamlessly aligned with the prevailing fashion at the time. Rozenburg eggshell porcelain was painted with flowers, birds, and insects in colour fields built up from extremely fine lines and dots. This was a necessity in the production process because the ultra-thin biscuit could not withstand dense and heavy layers of paint.

Rozenburg Eggshell Porcelain as Inspiration for Kantjes pottery

In Gouda, the successful launch of The Hague’s eggshell porcelain was watched with great interest. Under the leadership of Egbert Estié, who led the Gouda pottery factory between 1897 and 1905, hard work was done between 1900 and 1901 to create a new product that could compete with Rozenburgs eggshell porcelain. Estié decided to focus on pottery instead of porcelain to keep costs low and bring a cheaper alternative to the market. This was important because, although eggshell porcelain was very popular, it was also extremely expensive. The painting technique with extremely fine lines and dots was copied and adopted. Egbert Estié called these new designs: P-decors. The name is also a nod to Rozenburg: the ‘P’ refers to porcelain.

Tableware for princess Juliana

Egbert Estié managed to attract several experienced pottery painters from Rozenburg to join his factory in Gouda. In 1901, Dirk Bordewijk, Johannes de Vries, and Cornelis van Muijen started at the Zuid-Holland factory. All three had gained experience in The Hague painting eggshell porcelain. Between 1901 and 1902, the first objects with P-decor came to market. Among which was a large dinerware set, for the Dutch Royal family, Queen Wilhelmina end Princess Juliana. The invoice from October 1902 has been kept in archive.

Three Different P-Decors: A, B, and C

Objects with a P-decor were made between 1901 and approximately 1908. Three different types of P-decors were brought to market: P/A, P/B, and P/C. Theo Verstraaten is known as the designer of many early P-decors, although official records of this are missing. He had previously worked at Rozenburg. Verstraaten was associated with Plateelbakkerij Zuid-Holland between 1901 and 1908. Objects with a P-decor lack a year letter or sign. Therefore, it is difficult to date these objects precisely. The type of decor does provide an indication of the date. It can be assumed that P/A was first brought to market, around 1901. P/A are decors primarily with flowers and birds. P/C was launched around 1903. These are decors primarily with fruits and nuts. All decors were produced until 1908, with a few exceptions extending to 1914.

Talented Female Decorators

The P-decor was incredibly labour-intensive and meticulous work. Paintings were built up from fine lines and dots. Even larger decor elements like flowers, birds, and leaves were constructed from these so-called ‘kantjes’ elements. It is assumed that painting one P-decor object sometimes took weeks. Besides known Rozenburg painters like Dirk Bordewijk, Johannes de Vries, Cornelis van Muijen and Johannes Kool, notably many women worked on P-decor pottery production. The Gouda pottery factory Zuid-Holland gladly hired (unmarried) girls and women in the early twentieth century. Not only because they were often good at the extremely precise work of pottery painting, but also because they were cheaper than their male colleagues. Famous female decor painters were Francien Sanderus, Frederika Delchambre, her sister Charlotte Delchambre, Wilhelmina van Maaren, and Frederika Tiesema.

Change in Leadership at Plateelbakkerij Zuid-Holland

Between 1903 and 1905, it was a turbulent period for Plateelbakkerij Zuid-Holland. Both owners Adriaan Jonker and Egbert Estié left the Gouda factory in 1903 and 1905 respectively. From 1905, the factory was in the hands of the Hoyng family. With the new owner came innovation in the production process. Objects, made from 1907 or 1908 onwards were provided with a model number and a decor number. This also applied to pottery with P-decors. Here you see that different decors have different numbers. Examples are 243: a decor with blackberries and blackberry blossoms, 245: a decor with purple flowers and red flower buds, and 304: a decor with birds.

From P- to NP-Decor, the Influence of Willem Hartgring

In 1907, the famous plateel designer Willem Hartgring was hired at PZH. He had previously worked at Rozenburg and left with a quarrel. Hartgring was commissioned by the Hoyng family to breathe new life into the P-decor. He designs new decors and calls them NP-decors (new porcelain). NP-decors are slightly less refined and complicated. The colours are also more powerful, and you see that colour fields are entirely filled and no longer built up from thin lines.

Typical characteristics of NP-decors are dots and stars in the background and very fine black lines that run out into curls. Leaves and twigs of floral decorations also get a bright green, massive colour. The first decors with an NP-decor came to market in late 1908 and received a prominent place in the 1909 catalog.

Mat Flowers and Mat Birds

The next innovation at the pottery factory Zuid-Holland was by designer Daniël Harkink. He developed the matte glaze. This innovation was launched in 1910 at the Leipzig Trade Fair. From 1910, you see typical NP-decors in a matte version. These objects are always marked with MB for Mat Bloemen (Mat Flowers) and MV for Mat Vogels (Mat Birds).

How to Distinguish P- and NP-Decor

Vases with a P-decor are often painted all around with a symmetrical or asymmetrical decor. Vases with an NP-decor are often beautifully painted on the front but more sparsely decorated on the sides and back. Objects with a P-decor have large colour fields built up from fine, hatched lines. Other decor elements like flowers, leaves, or birds are also built up from lines or dots. In objects with an NP-decor, you often see leaves with a massive (often green) colour, and sometimes the flowers as well.
Objects with a P-decor have more complex and detailed decors and thus had higher production costs in the past. Therefore, they fetch more at auctions than objects with an NP-decor.

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