Bruce Bairnsfather 'Old Bill' series ashtray

Transfer printed ashtray featuring a cartoon design by Bruce Bairnsfather depicting a British soldier attempting to delouse a large artillery shell with a hammer, watched by a fellow soldier. A caption below has the observer delivering the following line: 'Give it a good 'ard 'un, Bert, you can generally 'ear 'em fizzing a bit first if they are going to explode.' The cartoon, in a sepia tone, is bordered by a design of alternating grass, a German picklehaub, a mess tin, an empty Corn Beef tin being investigated by a rat, and a British soft cap. This border has an inner delineation of dark brown and an outer border in gold. The reverse is printed in sepia 'A Souvenir of the Great War / Commenced Aug 4th 1914; Armistice Nov 11th 1918; Peace Signed June 28th 1919. Bairnsfather Ware. Grimwade's Stoke on Trent' above a cariacature labelled 'Old Bill'. A design number, 4281, is hand-painted next to the label.

Cartoons by English serviceman Bruce Bairnsfather reached their height of popularity towards the end of the First World War. His definitive down-trodden but happily defiant 'Old Bill' character quickly became a favourite. To cater to the public demand for his Western Front cartoons, many companies vied for licences to reproduce his work on a variety of media. Grimwade Pottery of Stoke-on-Trent (later Royal Winton) was successful in securing an agreement in 1917 and commenced producing cheap and cheerful transferware examples of Bairnsfather's cartoons on a wide selection of their wares. Grimwade's was able to ride Bairnsfather's wave of popularity well into the mid 1920s before war-weariness overtook the public. The cartoon reproduced on this ashtray is typical of the grim humour employed by Bairnsfather.