How to identify Troika pottery shapes

If you pick up a piece of Troika pottery, the first thing you will notice is how it feels. The surface is often rough, almost like stone, and the shapes are bold, sometimes angular. This combination is a big part of the appeal for collectors of work from this Cornish pottery studio. In this blog, we look at how to identify Troika pottery through its shape, distinctive forms and the decorators who brought each piece to life.

Troika pottery, named in part after its founding trio, was established in 1963 by Benny Sirota, Leslie Illsley and Jan Thompson. In the 20 years that followed, the company became one of Cornwall’s best-known pottery studios, based first in St Ives and later in Newlyn. The work was also sold through Heal’s and Liberty.

Shape is central to Troika because the pottery was built around mould-cast forms from the start. The founders even chose the name partly because the hard, angular sound suited the shapes they planned to produce.

Part of the appeal is that every piece is both familiar and one of a kind. The forms were made in moulds and then handed to decorators, who applied the surface design and signed the base. This means that many pieces share the same form, while the decoration and signature differ. Names like ‘wheel’ or ‘coffin’ identify the mould, and the decorator’s initials identify the individual piece.

A guide to the main Troika shapes

Troika’s forms are so distinctive that they’ve been given specific names. Knowing them makes it much easier to identify, describe and compare pieces. Here are the main shapes:

Wheel: a round, flattened form, often decorated with abstract designs. Wheel vases appear across the output, from early St Ives examples with the trident mark to later pieces.

Coffin: flat, slab-sided upright forms. The coffin vase was introduced in the Newlyn period, after Troika moved to its larger studio in 1970.

Chimney: the tall, narrow chimney forms are sometimes slab-sided and sometimes described as cylindrical, often with geometric decoration.

Cube: one of the earliest shapes in the textured range, made in three sizes, 7.5cm, 11.5cm and 15cm square. We currently have a cube vase by Anne Jones in stock, with incised and textured relief abstract decoration.

Cylinder: the cylinder vases are often decorated with a continuous band of motifs, such as circles, triangles or more abstract designs.

Slab forms: these are flat-sided rectangular or anvil vases, usually with abstract designs. The shouldered cuboid is a related shape.

Masks: the Cycladic-Aztec mask vases are defining pieces of the Newlyn period and are typically double-sided.

Lamp bases: these often share a vase shape but have a light fitting, and some have a double base. We’ve previously sold a large wheel lamp base measuring 33cm including the bayonet fitting, and a 43cm cylinder lamp base.

The clues in dimensions, texture, decoration and glaze

Troika’s designs were cast in moulds, so size can help confirm the form. The cube’s three standard sizes are a good example, and the recurring 17cm height for coffin vases suggests a standard mould size.

Troika made two main styles, smooth glazed pieces and the better-known rough-textured ware, with the textured pieces usually mould-made and hand-decorated. Each plaster mould lasted only about 30 to 50 uses, so Leslie Illsley began gluing beach sand into them to make them last longer, which also gave the pieces their familiar texture. Later, markings were impressed using nail heads and designs etched into the mould.

Motifs and forms can also point to a period. The mask vases are linked to Newlyn, and early decoration often uses simple circles.

Why you should check the base

Identifying the shape tells you which mould was used, but not who decorated it. Most genuine Troika is marked on the base with the Troika name, a place (such as Cornwall or St Ives), and the decorator’s initials or symbol.

We have sold Troika pieces by a wide range of decorators, including Alison Brigden, Anne Jones, Avril Bennett, Jane Fitzgerald, Louise Jinks, Marilyn Pascoe, Penny Black, Sylvia Vallence and Tina Doubleday. It’s worth noting that some decorators had matching initials (like Alison Brigden and Avril Bennett). Not every piece was signed, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t authentic; it that is the case, we would check the form, glaze and quality closely in the assessment process.

Discover how to identify Troika pottery marks and the most valuable initials.

Which Troika shapes are more sought-after?

Shape alone does not determine value, and prices are sensitive to supply and trends at the time. However, rarity, condition, style and provenance all matter, and assessing two similar pieces can receive different quotes depending on the decorator.

Some shapes do have a stronger following. Anvil vases, coffin vases, double-based lamps and mask vases are all sought-after. Cylinder vases with a band of circles and cube vases are usually seen as entry-level pieces. Double eggcups, made for Heal’s in the mid-1960s, are among the most commonly found forms today.

Smaller common pieces typically cost between £100 and £300, while mid-sized vases and bowls range from £300 to £600, depending on rarity and condition. You can discover more on typical Troika price ranges in our guide.

If you are interested in buying Troika pottery, our team would be pleased to talk with you. We’d also love to hear from any collectors looking to sell collectable pottery.