Established in 1894 at Longton, Stoke-on-Trent by James Wright Beswick and his sons John and Gilbert, the Beswick Pottery first made its name producing affordable tablewares and ornaments.
It was not until the 1930s (and specifically the introduction of a high fired bone china in 1934), that the firm turned to the animal modelling that would be their stock-in-trade for the rest of the century.
The attention to detail and anatomical correctness in the animal figures, overlaid by an enormous diversity of products - ensures collector interest lives on, worldwide.
The John Beswick factory was sold to Royal Doulton in 1969 and would finally close in 2002.