Linn Ware: Celebrating the Ceramics of Olifantsfontein

Timed Online Auction, 2 - 13 May 2025

Session One
About the Session

This sale features a broad selection of Linn Ware that celebrates South Africa’s rich ceramic traditions highlighting a key moment in the country’s artistic development — during a period when industrialisation and mass production were rapidly transforming the design landscape.  The Ceramic Studio, renamed Linn Ware in 1943, was founded on Sir Thomas Cullinan’s farm Olifantsfontein, outside Johannesburg which had rich deposits of clay and lime. It was staffed mostly by women students from the Durban School of Art, several of whom studied further at the Royal College of Art, London.  The Studio closed in the late 1950’s but left behind a beautiful body of work that is highly collectable today. Discover more about Linn Ware's fascinating history here.

 


Sold for

ZAR 29 313
Lot 47
  • Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio; Lobed vase
  • Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio; Lobed vase
  • Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio; Lobed vase
  • Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio; Lobed vase


Lot Estimate
ZAR 12 000 - 14 000
Selling Price
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
ZAR 29 313
Delivery
Additional delivery charges apply
Shipping
Condition Report
May include additional detailed images

About this Item

Olifantsfontein, South Africa 1925 - 1955
Lobed vase

impressed dish stamp

iridescent blue- and green-glazed earthenware
32cm high, 25cm diameter

Notes

The Ceramic Studio, renamed Linn Ware in 1943, was founded on Sir Thomas Cullinan's farm Olifantsfontein, outside Johannesburg which had rich deposits of clay and lime. It was staffed mostly by women students from the Durban School of Art, several of whom studied further at the Royal College of Art, London. The Studio closed in the late 1950s but left behind a body of beautiful work that is highly collectable today.

This particular piece has the iconic emerald green and turquoise colour palette, achieved using copper oxide in a transparent glaze, which together with the signature innovation of double-glazing, resulted in rich depth-enhancing finishes and the luminosity for which these pieces became renowned.

View all Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio lots for sale in this auction