The long-established Royal Doulton company is known for its beautifully presented, durable ornaments and dinnerware sets. In this article, we will touch on a number of popular Royal Doulton ornament series inspired by literature characters.
The Royal Doulton company would produce one-off ornaments as well as ornaments that were a part of a series. The series was often influenced by literature, fashion, the royal family, and famous personalities.
Nursery Rhyme Collection
Nursery Rhymes never seem to get old, passed from generation to generation. Royal Doulton noted the significance of nursery rhymes and thus the Nursery Rhyme Collection became a reality. There is no surprise that both young and old fell in love with the ornaments produced to accompany a number of dinnerware pieces.
The ornaments produced for the Nursery Rhymes Collection included:
Series #1:
- Little Jack Horner 1950-1953 (valued: $800)
- Tom Tom the Piper’s Son 1984-1987
- Curly Locks 1949-1953 (valued: $600-$700)
- Little Boy Blue 1950-1973 (valued: $100)
- My Pretty Maid 1950-1954 (valued: $700)
- Once Upon a Time 1949-1955 (valued: $600-$700)
- Jill 1950-1971 (valued: $200-$300)
- Mary Had a Little Lamb 1949-1988 (valued: $200)
- He Loves Me 1949-1962 (valued: $200-$300)
- Jack 1950-1971 (valued: $200-$300)
- Mary Mary 1949-1973 (valued: $200-$300)
- She Loves Me Not 1949-1962 (valued: $200-$300)
- Wee Willie Winkie 1949-1953 (valued: $400-$500)
Series #2:
- Little Miss Muffet 1984-1987 (valued: $200-$300)
- Polly Put the Kettle On 1983 (valued: $150-$200)
- Little Bo Peep 1984-1987 (valued: $200-$300)
- Cat and the Fiddle (valued: $100-$200)
- Humpty Dumpty (valued: $100-$200) limited to 1,500
- Old Mother Hubbarb 1964-1975 (valued: $100-$150)
Bunnykins Nursery Rhymes Series:
- Jack and Jill 2000-2003 (valued $100-$150)
- Little Bo Peep 2000-2003 (valued $100-$150)
- Little Boy Blue 2002-2004 (valued $100-$150)
- Little Jack Horner 2000-2003 (valued $100-$150)
- Little Miss Muffet 2002-2004 (valued $100-$150)
- Mary Mary Quite Contrary 2002-2003 (valued $100-$150)
- Old King Cole (valuled: $200) limited to 500 pieces
- Wee Willie Winkie 2002-2003 (valued $100-$150)
There were two different series of Nursery Rhyme characters produced by the company. There were a number of artists who worked on the designs for the nursery rhyme ornaments including Adrian Hughs, Peggy Davies, and Leslie Harradine.
Brambly Hedge Series
Based on the 1980s Brambly Hedge book series by Jill Barklem, Royal Doulton released a collection of adorable mice ornaments that are marked with the year 1985. While the ornaments were very popular with collectors, so too were the detailed plates, cups, saucers, and dinnerware accessories.
Multiple different Brambly Hedge ornament series were produced by the Royal Doulton company leading right up to the early 2000s. Of course like with most vintage items, the ornaments from the earliest series are the most sought after.
Royal Doulton Brambly Hedge ‘Gift Collection’ 1988:
- Flaux Weaver
- Lily Weaver
- Conker
- Old Vole
- Mrs Apple
Royal Doulton Brambly Hedge ‘Off to Pick Mushrooms’ from the ‘Autumn Story Collection’ 2003
Within the Autumn Story Collection produced by Royal Doulton in 2003, a depiction of the two main characters picking mushrooms can be noted. While this isn’t an overly pricey collectible, it is a sweet statement piece, especially for those who love literature.
The list of ornaments below were produced during 1988 or 2003 by the Royal Doulton Company:
- Poppy Eyebright (valued approximate: $40.00 USD)
- Mr Apple (valued approximate: $40.00 USD)
- Mrs Apple (valued approximate: $40.00 USD)
- Lord Woodmouse (valued approximate: $40.00 USD)
- Lady Woodmouse (valued approximate: $40.00 USD)
- Dusty Dogwood (valued approximate: $40.00 USD)
- Wilfred Toadflax (valued approximate: $40.00 USD)
- Primrose Woodmouse (valued approximate: $50.00 USD)
- Old Mrs Eyebright (valued approximate: $80.00 USD)
- Mr Toadflax First Edition Featuring Tail at the Front (valued approximate: $1400.00 USD)
- Mr Toadflax Second Edition Featuring Tail at the Back (valued approximate: $550.00 USD)
- Mr Toadflax Third Edition (valued approximate: $50.00 USD)
- Mrs Toadflax (valued approximate: $80.00 USD)
- Clover (valued approximate: $50.00 USD)
- Catkin (valued approximate: $130.00 USD)
- Teasel (valued approximate: $300.00 USD)
- Old Vole (valued approximate: $270.00 USD)
- Basil (valued approximate: $270.00 USD)
- Lily Weaver (valued approximate: $250.00 USD)
- Mrs Crustybread (valued approximate: $200.00 USD)
- Flax Weaver (valued approximate: $250.00 USD)
- Conker (valued approximate: $200.00 USD)
- Primrose Entertains (valued approximate: $80.00 USD)
- Wilfred Entertains (valued approximate: $80.00 USD)
- Mr Saltapple (valued approximate: $50.00 USD)
- Mrs Sattapple (valued approximate: $50.00 USD)
- Dusty and Baby (valued approximate: $50.00 USD)
Dickensware Series
The Dickensware series features a number of ornaments and collectible dinnerware pieces that were inspired by Charles Dickens, an English writer who introduced the world to some of the greatest fictional characters. The Royal Doulton company noticed the popularity of Charles Dickens fictional characters and began crafting their ‘Dickensware’ ornaments from 1922, right up until 1983.
If you include the 1994 limited edition ornament of Charles Dickens, then there is a total of 25 Dickensware ornaments produced by Royal Doulton. They were produced in such a widespread amount of years by the company and therefore alter in size. The earlier Dickensware ornaments were crafted from Bone China, then Transclusecnt China, and lastly the ornaments produced after 1968 were made from earthenware.
The following Charles Dickens characters were turned into 3D ornaments by the Royal Doulton Company:
- Alfred Jingle
- Artful Dodger
- Bill Sykes
- Bumble
- Buz Fuz
- Cap’n Cuttle
- David Copperfield
- Dick Swiveller
- Fagin
- Fat Boy
- Little Nell
- Mr Macawber
- Mr Pickwick
- Mrs Bardell
- Oliver Twist
- Pecksniff
- Sairey Gamp
- Sam Weller
- Scrooge
- Stiggins
- Tiny Tim
- Tony Weller
- Trotty Veck
- Uriah Heep
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