With pitchers of this size -- doubtless originally paired with a matching basin in a chamber set -- scale can often overwhelm the decoration.  The Masons potters meet the challenge, however, by enlarging a traditional pheasant and peony study, boldly executing the transfer in a strong black, and updating the color palette to a striking combination of brownish orange, yellow, emerald green and pale cream.  

The challenge of  so much white surface to fill is met by intensity of contrast, with a large, luscious peony bough boldly spread across the hip of the jug and occasional sprays tipped in pale cream buds reaching diagonally across the neck.  A melon, emerald and cream colored pheasant, having just alighted among the blossoms to study a nearby butterfly, focuses the composition. A loose floral vine sprinkled with pale cream, melon and green blossoms dances playfully around the collar with repeated sprigs inside the rim. A minute band of scallops and half blossoms trims the very edge of the rim. 

The serpent handle, often a point of intense, contrasting decoration in Masons patterns, here is simply incorporated into the overall pattern with a few of the floral sprigs.

For this piece, Masons has adapted a pattern usually identified with Davenport and dating from the first quarter of the nineteenth century. The formality of the Davenport pattern, utilizing more complicated color schemes and gilding, is loosened by Mason's use of colors not derived from Chinese sources, broader scale and greater contrast, and by allowing the open white ground to become a prominent design element.