Basic Ceramic Identification & Dating Guide
- Time To Read: approximately 3 minutes 22 seconds for 610 words
This is a basic guide to the identification and dating of British ceramics.
General
The earliest ceramics made by humans were pottery objects (pots or vessels) or figurines made from clay, either by itself or mixed with other materials like silica, hardened and sintered in fire. Later, ceramics were glazed and fired to create smooth, coloured surfaces, decreasing porosity through the use of glassy, amorphous ceramic coatings on top of the crystalline ceramic substrates. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain, and brick. We will look at the long and rich history.
This is a basic guide to the identification and dating of British ceramics.Pie Funnels, Vents & Whistles
- Time To Read: approximately 6 minutes 13 seconds for 1120 words
Sing a song of sixpence,a pocket full of rye,
Four and twenty blackbirds,
baked in a pie.
When the pie was opened
the birds began to sing;
Wasn't that a dainty dish,
to set before the king.
The king was in his counting house,
counting out his money;
The queen was in the parlour,
eating bread and honey.
The maid was in the garden,
hanging out the clothes,
When down came a blackbird
and pecked off her nose.
There was such a commotion,
that little Jenny wren
Flew down into the garden,
and put it back again.
It is said that this children´s nursery rhyme inspired Clarice Cliff to make the blackbird pie funnels.
Toby Jug – The Evolution Into The Character Jug
- Time To Read: approximately 9 minutes 52 seconds for 1770 words
The first Toby Jug was made in the early to mid 1700s, and featured a jovial, seated, male figure, with a mug in his hand and a tricorn hat which made a pouring spout. He was dressed in clothes of the time; a long coat with low pockets, waistcoat, cravat, knee breeches and buckled shoes. No one really knows why he was named ‘Toby’ although it is possible he was named after Sir Toby Belch a character in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Or maybe it was after a song popular in 1761, around the time the jug was first produced in a traditional, brown salt glaze version. The song ‘Brown Jug’ featured ‘Toby Fillpot’.