A COLLECTION of work from Middlesbrough’s once-famous Linthorpe Pottery will go under the hammer later this week.

For ten years, from 1879-1889, the town became a trendsetter for Victorian art and design under the artistic influence of one of Britain’s greatest designers, and a leading light in the arts and crafts movement, Christopher Dresser.

The pottery was established on the failed Sun Brick works in Linthorpe Village, Middlesbrough, and produced a new type of art influenced by Dresser’s fascination with eastern and South American design.

Linthorpe Pottery proved popular as it tapped into the Victorian interest in Orientalism and the aesthetic movement.

Tennants Auctioneers in Leyburn will be auctioning off more than 120 pieces of Linthorpe Pottery on Saturday, many of which were designed by Dresser himself, from the carefully curated private collection of Carl Banks, a retired florist who grew up in Middlesbrough. Every Saturday, when his siblings were taken to the football, his grandmother took him to the Dorman Museum which houses the largest collection of Linthorpe Pottery in the world.

Tennant specialist Diane Sinnott said: “Linthorpe was hugely important in establishing a new type of Art Pottery, and for collectors this is going to be a great opportunity to acquire a piece of our artistic heritage.

A catalogue for the sale is on the website www.tennants.co.uk, or for further information contact Tennants on 01969-623780, enquiry@tennants-ltd.co.uk.