Ralph Wood pearlware pottery group, Vicar and Moses, Staffordshire, c. 1785. An exceptionally fine depiction of Moses, escorting the Vicar. Moses carries a large lantern, painted with a lit candle. Wearing 18th Century dress, the heavily inebriated figures stagger back to the church, with the intention of performing a funeral service; standing on an oval grassy mound, which is set upon a large pedestal base, painted to simulate marble. Set with a large oval medallion, inscribed ‘Vicar and Moses’. Decorated in coloured enamels, beneath a pearlware glaze. Height - 30 cm, 11 3/4”. Width - 18.5 cm, 7 1/4”. Depth - 10.7 cm, 4 1/4”. Condition - Slight crack to the chin of Moses. Professional repair to the brim of his hat. Otherwise in excellent condition. A fine, early example of this group, in sharp contrast to the numerous later reproductions, of what was to prove a popular figure, but also illustrate the decline in quality of production at the Staffordshire factories by the end of the 19th Century.