Poole Mice Poole Pottery is a long-established English company that has made pottery pieces for many, many years. In 1972 Poole hired Barbara Linley Adams to design and sculpt a line of animal figurines. Barbara retired from Poole in 1983, but continued to produce sculpture for Poole for another 5 years. These mice have been produced in a variety of different finishes.
		Mouse on Apple #703 1972-89 This mouse also has been found in bone china.
Thanks to Roger Hartley for information and pictures.
Poole greenware mouse, stoneware, glazed (gloss) finish mouse
These are the 3 traditional stoneware mice I associate with Poole. The mice have also been made with the glazed finish. They are called Mouse Crouching, Mouse Standing, and Mouse Sitting.
This stoneware Mouse on Mushroom has just popped up. It is a rare, uncatalogued, trial piece signed by Barbara Linley Adams, and made about 1973.		This Mouse Standing with the blue glaze may also have been a trial piece.
In 1991 Nicky Massarella applied acrylic paints to some of the figures to give them a different surface treatment. Massarella is still with Poole and is now in the Design Studio.
Dormouse Awake (stoneware)	Dormouse Asleep (stoneware)	Dormouse Awake (brown glaze 1979/80)	Dormouse Asleep (brown glaze 1979/80)
Vole with Strawberry (stoneware)	Vole with Strawberry (bone china)	Vole with Strawberry (blue glaze 1989-93)	Vole with Strawberry (acrylic painting 1991)
Harvest Mouse (stoneware)	Harvest Mouse (bone china 1985)	Harvest Mouse (blue glaze 1989)	Harvest Mouse (acrylic painting 1991)

The true test of all the bone china Poole animals is that they all have gold eyes. Some people actually refer to them as "Goldeneyes" - and a gold backstamp

Pictured below are several floral pieces. They are very scarce. It seems that the mice pieces were made in 1979/80 from the moulds which produced the brown-glazed versions. There are only 3 mice - crouching, sitting and standing. Information and picture provided by Roger Hartley.

In 1982 Poole began using Linley's designs to create a series of 5" plates. The mice series was produced between 1982-1988.

Top Row: Mouse Eating Nut (1982-88), Harvest Mice (1982-88), Mouse and Snail (1982-88) Bottom Row: Mouse and Butterfly (1982-88), Mouse Eating Blackberries (1982 only), Mouse Chasing Leaves (1982 only)

return to Main Menu