RARE Antique Shorter & Son Staffordshire Rectangular Platter Dish Bowl. c1920s

A rare and wonderfully characterful antique Majolica-style rectangular platter or dish by Shorter & Son of Staffordshire, England, dating from the 1920s. The piece is decorated with a richly evocative scene depicting two traditional horse-drawn caravans with chimneys and a solitary figure playing a banjo — quite possibly a travelling musician, capturing a romantic snapshot of Romany or travelling life in early 20th-century Britain.

This is a rare and unusual subject for Shorter & Son, making it a particularly desirable find for collectors of Staffordshire pottery, Majolica ware, or social history ceramics. Shorter & Son was founded around 1872 and became well known for their decorative earthenware and novelty pottery, before the factory finally closed in 1974.

• Maker: Shorter & Son, Staffordshire, England
• Style: Majolica / Decorative earthenware
• Design: Two traditional caravans with chimneys; figure playing banjo
• Era: c.1920s
• Dimensions: 29cm x 21.5cm x 5cm
• Condition: No signs of use, no scratches, chips, or cracks; some crazing on close inspection