Jackfield Spaniels: Black Sheep or Dark Horse of the Staffordshire Dog Family?

September 5, 2025

We've asked our social media followers which shade of Staffordshire Spaniel they covet the most. We hear three cheers for the classics: white with gold accents, russet, and black and white. The less common copper lustre pups even get a shout out every once in a while. But rarely do we hear any champions for the less common solid black Jackfield Spaniel.

Jackfield Ware was produced by applying a glossy black glaze over red earthenware. It is originally credited to potters in Jackfield, England. Staffordshire and other potters copied the technique and applied it to their pieces including to mantle dogs. Jackfield spaniels can feature gold highlights and features and eyes are either done in sgraffito style (where a layer of glazed is scratched away to reveal a different underlying color) or painted white (giving them a somewhat...um...shocked expression).

A pair of large black antique Staffordshire King Charles Spaniel dogs with white hand-painted eyes, featuring some gilding on collars, locks, and chains.

At Friend of Jane we are proud to offer a very rare pair of extra large Jackfield Spaniels. These two hefty figures tower over the other dogs in our collection and feature white handpainted eyes. Some of the red earthenware can be seen through the glaze on the bottoms of the dogs. We know a banana is the trendy fruit to use for scale, but lacking any on hand, we've opted for an apple to demonstrate the grand size of this duo.

And if an apple still isn't giving you a good idea of their size, here's one pictured with what we consider an average size Wally Dog.

That's one big dog! Kate and I feel the Jackfield is the Dark Horse of the Staffordshire dog family. They may often be overlooked, but they're a true treasure to avid collectors of these precious pups. If you'd like to add this rare and truly massive pair of pups to your collection, they may be purchased here.

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