Picture Gallery

For the first 20 to 30 years after it was founded in 1858, the pottery firm of W.H. Goss concentrated on producing a range of parian ware and various ornamental items.
	The parian ware included a large range of busts of people of topical or historical interest at the time (royalty, politicians, writers, etc.) as well as classical and other statues and figures.
Ornamental items included vases, floral jewellery and trinket boxes, sea shells, and decorative plates and plaques.
	The heraldic china, for which the firm is now best known and to which it has generally lent its name, was first introduced at the instigation of Adolphus Goss in the 1880's. He had the idea of introducing a range of miniature porcelain models of historical artefacts from around Britain and selling them through various local agents around the country, decorated with coats of arms of interest locally. These generally included the arms of the town or city in which the agent was situated, as well as the arms of surrounding towns or villages for which no agent had been appointed, but could also include the local county arms, arms of local institutions (universities, schools, abbeys, ecclesiastical sees, etc.), and arms of famous local people.
By the turn of the (last) century there were around 500 agents spread throughout Britain and around 100 different models available. And these figures continued to increase rapidly over the next twenty years or so, with both the agents and models being no longer confined to Britain: the first overseas agent was appointed (in Bermuda) shortly after 1900 and the first overseas models were introduced around 1905.
	It became increasingly difficult for collectors to keep abreast of all the models and arms that were available and where they could be obtained. So one keen collector, Mr. J.J. (Joseph John) Jarvis, set about compiling a list of agents and the arms they stocked. He also compiled a list of all the currently available models, annotated in some cases with descriptive notes and indicating where appropriate the particular agent with which the model was specifically associated, important information for many collectors, including Jarvis himself, who wished to collect models bearing their `correct' or `matching' arms, that is the arms of the city or town (or in some cases person) with which the model was especially associated.
Jarvis' lists were first published in 1900, by Jarvis himself, under the title `The Goss Record' and between 1900 and 1921 appeared in 9 editions (plus a few intermediate supplements), the last edition listing around 1500 agents and around 400 models. Jarvis also founded a collectors' club, which was initially called `The League of Goss Collectors' but later changed to `The International League of Goss Collectors' as its scope and that of the factory increased, and he arranged with the factory for the production of a small range of special models which were exclusively available to members of the club. Each of these "league" models bore arms which were specially designed for the club, there being two versions of these arms corresponding to the two different names of the club, though the arms of `The League of Goss Collectors' were phased out in favour of the international version in around 1919 and thus are found only on the earlier league models.
	The range of models also included buildings, lighthouses, fonts, and crosses. A few models of coloured buildings were in fact introduced when the factory first began to cater for the holiday souvenir market. These included Shakespeare's House, Anne Hathaway's Cottage, and Robert Burns Cottage. Eventually this range expanded to around 40 different buildings.
A range of animals on plinths was produced, primarily it is believed for sale at the British Empire Exhibitions held at Wembley in 1924 and 1925, though a few, including the Cheshire Cat and the Shetland Pony, were produced a little earlier. A coloured version of one of the animals, the Tiger, is also known. In the main these animals are very rare.
	The crosses and fonts are also mostly very rare, with a few exceptions, despite the fact that both ranges enjoyed long production lives. Crosses are generally found unglazed and coloured brown or white, though the white versions can also be found glazed in some cases. Only the white Richmond Market Place Cross normally carries a coat of arms, though some of the other models can be found bearing the arms of Blackpool. In total, 14 crosses were modelled, some of which can be found in 2 different sizes.
Fonts can be found in the same range of finishes as the crosses, though in this case many of the white glazed versions do usually carry a coat of arms. With the exception of the Winchester Cathedral Font which can be found in 2 sizes (and also in black instead of brown), there are no variations in size among the 12 different models, but the St. Martin's Font, Canterbury can be found in three variant shapes -- with a lid, with a bowl, and open.
	The range of different types of decorations is also large, and in addition to the well-known coats of arms includes flags, pictorial views, flora and fauna, and commemorative designs.
Transfer printed pictorial views were produced for many years and a huge variety of different designs exists. These are mostly views of locations in the British Isles, but a small range of views of overseas locations were also produced. Most of these decorations are quite rare, the overseas ones being especially so.
	A range of decorations for children's domestic ware was also produced during the early 1920's based on designs made by Margaret Goss (granddaughter of William Henry). These can be identified by the initials M.G. accompanied by the year and are quite rare.
Towards the end of the factory's lifetime, a range of other domestic ware was also produced, including some in the shape of coloured cottages and some decorated with cottage scenes. These are generally marked "Goss Cottage Pottery". Items produced after the Goss family sold the company in 1929 are generally marked "Goss England" (with the notable exception of the last few league models). These include heraldic wares but with the emphasis on items such as comical animals and figures which had been produced in a wide range by other factories for a number of years and which had proved so popular with their customers.