Worcester--Royal Porcelain Works--Dr. Wall--Warmstrey House
and its Owners--The Porcelain Company--Early Marks--Transfer
Printing--King of Prussia Mug--Josiah Holdship--Poem--Robert
Hancock--Richard Holdship--Derby China Works--Caughley--Flight
and Barr--Chamberlain--Kerr and Binns--R. W. Binns--Productions
of the Works--Royal Services--Tokens--Royal China
Works--Grainger and Lee--Productions--St. John’s Encaustic
Tiles--Rainbow Hill Tileries--St. George’s Pottery Works--Rustic
Terra-Cotta--Stourbridge--The Lye Works--Stourbridge Clay.
WORCESTER--THE ROYAL PORCELAIN WORKS.
There are three things for which the “faithful city” of Worcester, so
celebrated in history for its loyalty, is at the present day especially
famous. These are its porcelain, its gloves, and its sauce. For who
has not drunk out of or seen “Worcester china,” worn “Dent’s gloves,”
or tasted “Lea and Perrin’s Worcestershire sauce”? These three are
things which are identified with its name wherever Worcester is heard
of, and, in the minds of some people, take precedence of its glorious
cathedral, its tomb of King John, or its exquisitely beautiful shrine
of Prince Arthur. With the first of these only I have now to do, and
its history is one of great interest, as connected with that of the
general porcelain manufacture of the kingdom.
At a time when foreign china was much sought after, when Fulham,
Chelsea, Bow, and Derby were gradually working their way into favour,
and gaining ground on their foreign rivals in the estimation of
people of taste, Worcester was quietly experimentalising in the
same direction, and gradually paving the way for the establishment
of those works which have since become so great a benefit to it,
and so great an honour to the country. Exactly in the middle of the
last century these experiments were carried on, and the works were
soon afterwards established, and rapidly grew into note. So rapidly,
indeed, did the ware made at this manufactory come into repute, that
in the year following the opening of the works it was noticed in the
_Gentleman’s Magazine_, and in 1763 was alluded to in the “Annual
Register.”
[Illustration: Fig. 451.--Portrait of Dr. Wall.]
The “faithful city” was indebted for the establishment of its pottery
to the exertions and scientific researches of Dr. John Wall, a
physician of that city. The learned doctor was born at Powick, a
village in Worcestershire, in the year 1708. His father was a tradesman
in Worcester, of which city he served the office of mayor in 1703;
he was descended from a good family in Herefordshire. Dr. Wall’s
father dying while he was young, he was educated at the King’s School,
Worcester, and in 1726 became a scholar at Worcester College, Oxford.
Nine years later, at the age of twenty-seven, he became a fellow of
Merton College. Having studied at Oxford and at St. Thomas’s Hospital,
he in 1739 took his degree, and commenced practice in Worcester. He
married Catherine Sandys, cousin to the first Lord Sandys. Dr. Wall,
besides being a clever practitioner and an excellent chemist, was also
an artist of great ability; he painted historical pictures with great
judgment, and his conceptions were sometimes marked with considerable
originality and grandeur. One of his principal pictures is that of the
founder, &c., in the hall of Merton College, Oxford--a painting[72]
he presented to that college in 1765. Of his other works, his “Brutus
condemning his Sons,” “The Head of Pompey brought to Cæsar” (now at
Hagley), “Regulus returning to Carthage,” “Queen Eleanor sucking the
Poison from the Arm of Edward I.,” “Elijah fed by the Ravens,” “Moses
striking the Rock,” “The School of Physic,” “The Shunamite’s Child
restored,” and “The Head of St. John the Baptist,” are among the
best. He also etched some remarkably clever plates, and designed the
stained-glass window in the bishop’s private chapel at Hartlebury, the
“Presentation of Christ in the Temple,” a window at Oriel College,
and others. Dr. Wall was also the author of several medical works,
and was eminently instrumental in bringing the Malvern waters into
public notice. He was also one of the most zealous supporters of the
Worcestershire Infirmary.
Dr. Wall, besides his other accomplishments, was, as has already been
intimated, an excellent practical chemist; his laboratory was at
No. 33, Broad Street. He turned his attention more particularly to
experimentalising on materials which might be used for the manufacture
of porcelain; and in 1751, about a year after the establishment of the
works at Derby, and while those at Chelsea and Bow were being carried
on, he brought his experiments to a successful issue; the result being
the discovery of a body of surpassing excellence.
It has been said, and there is indeed a traditional belief in the
fact, that the mainspring of Dr. Wall’s experiments was a political
one, and that he was induced to turn his attention to the subject in
the hope of introducing into Worcester a new branch of manufacture,
by which “the low party of the county” might be enabled, by the votes
it would command, “to stand a competition for members of parliament
with the ministerial or popular party.”[73] I cannot, however, for a
moment, and, despite all that has been brought forward on the matter,
believe that this was the motive power by which Dr. Wall, a man of high
intellect and attainments, and of noble character, was impelled to the
prosecution of his inquiries; but that for the good of science and of
commerce alone, and with a knowledge that a branch of manufacture of
the kind, if once well established, must be lucrative to its possessors
and advantageous to the city, he was induced to work hard and zealously
in his laboratory until he had mastered the difficulties which
surrounded him, and had produced a material that should successfully
rival the foreign examples which he took for his model. However, be
this as it may, in the year 1751 success had so far attended his
labours that he formed a company for the manufacture of porcelain in
Worcester, and thus laid the foundation of that manufacture which has
been carried on with uninterrupted success for a century and quarter.
The “Worcester Porcelain Company,” founded, then, in 1751 by Dr. Wall,
consisted of several gentlemen who joined him in his undertaking,
and thus formed a “joint-stock company” for the manufacture of the
chinaware on the principle he had discovered. The names of these
proprietors from 1751 to 1772 were Dr. Wall, Richard Holdship, Rev.
Benjamin Blayney, Samuel Bradley, Rev. Samuel Pritchett, Wm. Oliver,
David Henry (in place of Richard Holdship), Wm. Davis, John Salway,
Germain Lavie, Rev. Thomas Vernon, Mary Blayney, Richard Cook,
Henry Cook, and John Thorneloe. The company thus formed commenced
its operations in a fine old mansion, formerly the residence of the
Warmstrey family, in Warmstrey Slip and Palace Row, nearly adjoining
the bishop’s palace; the grounds at the back, at that time beautifully
laid out, running down to the banks of the Severn, and commanding a
delightful view of the valley, and of the Malvern and Abberley hills
beyond.
“The mansion of the Warmstrey family,” says a local writer, in
1837, “is conjectured to have been occupied as far back as the
reign of Henry VII. and Henry VIII., by Sir William Windsor,
second Lord Windsor, an ancestor of the late Earl of Plymouth.
On the first floor of the house is a parlour, wainscoted round
with oak, and over the fire-place is a very curious specimen
of armorial ensigns, carved in wood, and bearing the marks of
great age. They are the arms of Sir William Windsor, second Lord
Windsor, the distinguished nobleman just alluded to, and such as
are borne by the Earls of Plymouth. The arms are quartered as
follows:--
“1. Windsor--gules a saltire ar. between twelve cross
crosslets, or. 2. Blount--barry nebulæ of six, or and sable. 3.
Eckingham--azure, fretty, argent. 4. Beauchamp of Hatch, co. of
Somerset--vairy, argent and azure; Crest; a buck’s head gardent,
couped at the neck, ar.
“The arms have supporters, and underneath them is this motto or
inscription--‘Stemmata quid faciunt?’
“The late Earl of Plymouth, when inspecting the process of the
porcelain works a few years back, with his sister, the late
Marchioness of Downshire, and his father-in-law, Earl Amhurst,
recognised these memorials of his ancestors, and viewed them for
some time with much interest.
“In 1533, reign of Henry VIII., this Sir William Windsor,
second Lord Windsor, was made one of the Knights of the Bath,
against the coronation of Anne Boleyn, which was performed
with great solemnity at Westminster. And at the decease of the
king, he was one of the twelve peers, chief mourners, who, on
August 8th, 1553, attended the funeral. His lordship was buried
at Bredenham, in Buckinghamshire (where the family then had
estates), very splendidly, according to his quality, says Strype.
“After a lapse of ages, the family of the Plowdens occupied
the mansion for some time; and ultimately this ancient
edifice, about eighty-six years since, was devoted to its
present purposes, and now exhibits an animating scene of art
and industry, rivalling most successfully some of the finest
productions of the Royal Porcelain Works of the Continent.
“A few of the old rooms are preserved in their original state,
and have been much admired by some learned antiquaries, and
others who delight in viewing the relics of past ages. The house
forms a sort of quadrangle, with a court in the centre, and was
formerly the residence of the ‘Warmstreys,’ several of whom
were connected, as registrars and others, with the Cathedral
Church of Worcester. The library of the house is a lofty and
spacious room, wainscoted with oak, carved in various parts with
different devices, and the arms of the family of ‘Warmstrey,’
viz., a cross molyn between crescents and decrescents, and
impaled and quartered with the arms of other families. The
fire-place is of very ample dimensions, with handsome pillars
on each side, and the chimney-piece is decorated with a scroll
extremely well cut. Surmounting it, the royal arms of England
appear most curiously carved; and around the room may still be
seen the antique book-shelves, edged with a scolloped border of
green cloth, remaining quite firm in its texture. Adjoining the
library, is a small study, fitted up with book-shelves in the
same style.”
The family was one of considerable note, and monuments to Mrs. Cecil
Warmstrey, widow of the registrar of the diocese, 1649; to the said
registrar; and to Dr. Thomas Warmstrey, dean of Worcester, their son,
1661, who was a famous divine, and was one of the persons appointed
by the city to treat as to terms of its surrender to the army of the
parliament in 1646--are to be seen in the cathedral. The building
still remains, and is now occupied by Messrs. Dent and Co. for the
manufacture of gloves. The old part of the building has been entirely
denuded of its ornament, and stripped of every vestige of its former
grandeur; the gardens have been covered with engine-houses, scouring
and dyeing rooms, and other buildings necessary to the works now
carried on, and which find employment for many hundreds of people.
Warmstrey House was sold in 1707 by its then owners, the Rev. Chewning
Blackmore and Abigail his wife, for the sum of £340, to William Evett,
glover. On the 16th of May, 1751, the premises were leased by William
Evett, glover, to Richard Holdship the younger, glover, for the term
of twenty-one years, with right of renewal for a further term of
twenty-one years on payment of a fine of £20, the annual rent being £30.
This Richard Holdship was one of the partners in the porcelain
company, and it was, it appears, for the purposes of this company
that he became lessee of the premises. The company at this time, on
its first formation, appears to have consisted of Dr. John Wall, Mr.
Richard Holdship, the Rev. Benjamin Blayney, and Mr. Samuel Bradley, a
goldsmith, who kept the house in High Street for retailing the ware.
To these were subsequently added the others named above. In 1772–4 the
partners were Dr. Wall, the two William Davises, father and son, Rev.
T. Vernon, Robert Hancock the engraver, and Richard Cook of London. In
1774 Hancock left the concern, and from 1776 to 1783 the two Davises
and Vernon were the only proprietors.
The company at first turned its attention principally to the production
of imitations of the Chinese porcelain, both in form and colour. Thus
the blue and white patterns--then so general in Chinese porcelain, and
the characteristic of the Nankin ware--were for a time, it appears,
exclusively followed at Worcester. Some of the brilliant colours of the
Japanese ceramists were, however, soon attempted, and with complete
success; and by the conventional arrangement of these colours in new
patterns the Worcester potters were gradually led on to more elaborate
productions.
[Illustration: Fig. 452.]
The works must have been commenced on a tolerably large scale, and
have rapidly risen in importance, for in 1752--only a year after the
formation of the company--the premises were very business-like in their
arrangement and extensive in their proportions, and were sufficiently
important to be engraved in the _Gentleman’s Magazine_ of that
year. Of that view the accompanying engraving is a reduced fac-simile,
and it will show at once how soon the works had risen to a state of
importance. The following explanatory references from the Magazine will
make it better understood:--“Explanation. 1. St. Andrew’s. 2. Warmstrey
Slip. 3. Biscuit kilns. 4. Glazing kilns. 5. Great kiln for segurs. 6.
Pressing and modelling gallery. 7. Rooms for throwing, turning, and
stove-drying the ware on the first floor, _a_, of the chamber
floors. 8. The garden. 9. The yard for coals. 10. Mr. Evett’s house
and garden, landlord of the premises. _b_. The eight windows in
two large chambers, in which the ware is placed on stallions, on the
east and north, where are the painters’ rooms. All the beginning of the
process is carried on under the quadrangular building, ground floor,
marked A; in its N.W. angle is the great rowl and ring; in the
N.E. the horses turn the same, and the levigators near to the rowl. The
next (on the ground floor) is the slip and treading-rooms; behind No.
4 is the glazing-room; behind 5 is the secret-room on the ground-floor.”
Accompanying this engraving, which bears the initials “_J. D. delin._”
(probably John Davis, one of the partners) and “J. C. sculp.” (probably
J. Cave), is the following interesting note:--“N.B. A sale of this
manufacture will begin at the _Worcester_ music-meeting on Sept. 20,
with great variety of ware, and, ’tis said, at a moderate price.”
This was probably the first time the Worcester goods were brought into
the public market. The goods were first vended by Mr. Samuel Bradley,
one of the partners, at a shop opposite the Guildhall in High Street,
and afterwards in larger premises near the Cross.
The characteristic of the early ware was a peculiarly soft greenness
of hue in the body, and by this, as well as the general style of
ornamentation, and by the marks, Worcester specimens may without
difficulty be recognised. The first mark used I believe to have been
a simple letter W., but the marks are so various in the early period
of the manufacture that it is most difficult, indeed impossible, to
arrange them chronologically. Like the D on the Derby porcelain, which
might be either the initial of the founder of the works, _Duesbury_,
or that of the town, _Derby_, the Worcester ware had a W., which might
be the initial of _its_ founder, _Wall_, or of the city, _Worcester_,
itself. The different varieties of the letter W which have come under
my notice are the following, and these may certainly all of them be
ascribed to an early period. Another distinctive mark of about the same
time is the crescent, which is sometimes drawn in outline, sometimes
filled in in lines, and sometimes of full blue colour. This mark is
supposed to be taken, and perhaps with some probability, from the arms
of the Warmstreys, which decorated the rooms used by the workmen.
It is worthy of note here, that one of the marks of the Caughley or
Coalport porcelain was also a crescent. As these works are said to have
been established by Worcester workmen, the use of this mark may be
attributed to them, and it may have had the double signification of a
crescent and a C for _Caughley_.
[Illustration: Figs. 453 to 460.]
As the Worcester aim was to copy, and emulate in design and material,
the ceramic productions of China and Japan,--indeed, there were
scarcely any others to copy from at this early period,--so it appears
to have been the study of the artists to copy, or to simulate, the
marks used on the productions of these foreign manufactories; and thus
a great variety of marks are to be met with principally, or, I may say,
entirely, drawn in blue. Some of the most characteristic and general of
these I here append.
[Illustration: Figs. 461 to 481.]
A considerable variety of other marks are to be met with, but I
apprehend they are most probably but the distinctive marks of the
artists employed. It must be borne in mind that in other factories the
“hands” were numbered, and, as was the case at Derby, were required to
attach each one his number below the general mark of the establishment.
At Worcester I am not aware that such a regulation existed; and thus,
probably, each artist had his “mark” instead. A few examples of these I
here give:--
[Illustration: Figs. 482 to 511.]
After a time the Dresden and Sèvres productions were studied and
successfully followed at Worcester, the salmon-coloured ground and
_bleu de roi_ being excellently managed. Tea and dessert services,
vases, &c., were produced in these styles, some of which are remarkable
for the elegance of their painting and ornamentation. On many examples
of this period the Dresden mark was used, as shown in the accompanying
woodcut.
[Illustration: Fig. 512.]
In March, 1756, “The proprietors of the Worcester China Manufacture,
for the better accommodation of merchants and traders, have opened a
warehouse at London House, Aldersgate Street, London, where they may be
supplied every day, between the hours of nine in the morning and three
in the afternoon, with a sortment of goods, wholesale, on the most
reasonable terms. Orders are likewise taken and executed with dispatch
for home and foreign trade.”
[Illustration: Fig. 513.]
A remarkable bowl, apparently from a mould cast from a silver original,
is of the date of the commencement of these works. It is in possession
of Mrs. Barr, and bears beneath it the date [1751] Mr. Binns also
possesses specimens which may be attributed to about the same period.
In 1756, the truly important invention of printing on china, _i.e._
transferring printed impressions from engraved copper-plates on to the
china body, is said to have been made in Worcester. At all events, it
is an undoubted fact that, in 1757, the art in Worcester had arrived
at a wondrous state of perfection; and it is but fair, therefore,
to say that the belief in its being practised in the previous year
is well founded. To have arrived at the state of perfection which
is exhibited in the example to which I am alluding (a mug bearing
the head of the King of Prussia, and dated 1757), must at least have
been the work of months, if not of years. The invention of transfer
printing is claimed, and very plausibly, for Liverpool, and is said
to have been made by Mr. John Sadler, who drew up papers, and procured
affidavits, for obtaining a patent, in August, 1756; on the 27th of
July in that year he and his partner, Guy Green, were sworn to have
printed more than twelve hundred earthenware tiles in six hours.
Whether the Worcester idea was taken from Liverpool, or whether both
were taken from Battersea, or whether, as is not unfrequently the case,
the invention originated in two minds about the same time, without
one being at all connected with the other, it is not for me now to
determine. It is enough for my present purpose to say that _highly
finished_ printed goods were made at Worcester in 1757, and the dated
example now in existence clearly establishes the fact that it was a
work of some forethought and care. On this mug the following poem
appeared in the _Gentleman’s Magazine_ for December, 1757:--
[Illustration: Fig. 514.]
POEM
ON SEEING AN ARM’D BUST OF THE KING OF PRUSSIA CURIOUSLY
IMPRINTED ON A PORCELAIN CUP OF THE WORCESTER MANUFACTURE, WITH
THE EMBLEMS OF HIS VICTORIES. INSCRIBED TO MR. JOSIAH HOLDSHIP.
Here, taught by thee, we view with raptured eyes,
Graceful and bold, the Prussian hero rise--
The royal chief, the Cæsar of the age,
Whose acts the wonder of the world engage.
The martial spirit animates his mien,
His heart intrepid, and his look serene.
There Fame, regardless else who reigns or bleeds,
With all her breath resounds his mighty deeds.
Here from whole nations in the field o’erthrown,
He points to trophies which are all his own;
While Victory gives to valour so renown’d
The blooming wreath which her own temples bound.
See where his virtues still his life expose,
And smile defiance to surrounding foes.
The intriguing Saxon see him there[74] surprise;
Here from his arms the Imperial Eagle[75] flies;
Tho’ fortune frowns,[76] unknowing how to yield,
He drives, by proxy,[77] Russia from the field.
Now, farther prest, behold him still advance,
And pour destruction on the troops[78] of France;
Before his glitt’ring arms the Swedes retire,
And mourn pale Envy’s unfulfilled desire.
Yet lo! once more by frowning fortune crost,
He sees a battle, Breslau, Bevern lost:
Yet soon, that loss retrieved, the hero gains
Immortal glory on Silesian plains.
His active spirit still disdains repose,
Resolv’d to combat with stern wintry snows;
And through the regions of her cold domain,
To stretch the triumphs of the long campaign.
What praise, ingenious HOLDSHIP, is thy due,
Who first on porcelain the fair portrait drew;
Who first alone to full perfection brought
The curious art, by rival numbers sought.
Hence shall thy skill inflame heroic souls,
Who mighty battles see round mightier bowls;
While Albion’s sons shall see their features, name,
And actions copied on the _cup_ of fame.
Hence beauty, which repairs the waste of war,
Beauty may triumph on a china jar:
And this, perhaps, with stronger faith to trust,
Than the stain’d canvas or the marble bust.
For here, who once in youthful charms appears
May bloom uninjured for a thousand years;
May time--till now opposed in vain--defie,
And live still fair, till Nature’s self shall die.
Here may the toasts of every age be seen,
From Britain’s Gunning back to Sparta’s Queen:
And every hero history’s page can bring
From Macedonia’s down to Prussia’s king.
Perhaps the art may track the circling world.
Where’er thy Britain has her sails unfurl’d;
While wond’ring _China_ shall with envy see,
And stoop to borrow her own arts from thee.
CYNTHIO.
_Worcester, 20th Dec., 1757._
A different version of this poem was reprinted in the _Worcester
Journal_ of January, 1758, with the addition of a couple of lines.
It is there headed:--“On seeing an armed bust of the King of Prussia
curiously imprinted on a Porcelain Cup of the Worcester Manufacture,
with Fame resounding her Trump and an emblematical representation of
his victories: Addressed to Mr. Josiah Holdship;” and an “_extempore_
on the compliment of imprinting the King of Prussia’s Bust being
ascribed to Mr. Josiah Holdship.” The _extempore_ being the following
important lines:--
“Handcock, my friend, don’t _grieve_, tho’ Holdship has the praise,
’Tis yours to execute--’tis his to wear the bays.”
From this it would seem that the credit of the invention (for more
information see the chapters on the Liverpool potteries and the
Coalport china works) was even then a vexed question in Worcester;
some ascribing it to Holdship, and others to Hancock; and, no doubt,
each of those individuals claiming it for himself. Robert Hancock was
an engraver of some eminence in Worcester, and “was chief engraver[79]
to the Worcester Porcelain Company on its first establishment;” and
it is also said he was in partnership with Dr. Wall. He died in 1817,
aged eighty-seven. Valentine Green, the historian of Worcester, and a
famous mezzo-tint engraver, was a pupil of Robert Hancock’s (by whom
many of the plates in his “History of Worcester” are engraved), as was
also James Ross, the line engraver. Valentine Green died in London in
1813, and was buried in the churchyard of St. Mary’s, Paddington, where
his gravestone now stands. Hancock, it is believed, had, previously
to printing on porcelain at Worcester, produced some printed plaques
at Battersea, specimens of which, with his name attached, are in
existence.[80]
Richard Holdship, it will have been seen, was one of the original
proprietors of the Worcester works, and became, in 1751, the lessee of
the premises (Warmstry House) in which the manufacturing operations
were commenced. In 1759 he, conjointly with his brother Josiah
Holdship, purchased the property for £600, having previously purchased
some houses to the south of the works, on whose site he erected a large
and commodious mansion. He, however, became bankrupt in 1761, having
sold his shares in the porcelain works to Mr. David Henry, of London,
for the immense sum of five shillings.
Shortly after that, Holdship appears to have left Worcester, and, as
evidenced by the original deed in my own possession, in 1764 bound
himself by bond and various articles of agreement, to Messrs. Duesbury
and Heath, of Derby, for the making and printing china or porcelain
ware. In these “articles of agreement” he is described as “Richard
Holdship, of the city of Worcester, china maker,” and in it he agrees
for “the sum of one hundred pounds of lawful British money,” to be
paid down, and for an annuity of thirty pounds a year, to be paid
to him during life, to deliver to Messrs. Duesbury and Heath, “in
writing under his hand, the process now pursued by him the said Richard
Holdship, in the making of china or porcelain ware, agreeable to the
proofs already made (by him) at the china manufactory of the said John
Heath and William Duesbury, in Derby;” also, “during his life to supply
and furnish” them “with a sufficient quantity of soapy rock used in
the making of china or porcelain ware, at such a price as any other
china manufacturers do, shall, or may at any time hereafter give for
that commodity;” and “also that he, the said Richard Holdship, shall
and will during his life print, or cause to be printed, all the china
or porcelain ware which the said John Heath and William Duesbury,
their heirs, &c., shall from time to time have occasion to be printed,
of equal skill and workmanship, and upon as reasonable terms as the
said (Heath and Duesbury) can have the same done for by any other
person or persons whomsoever, or agreeable to the prices now given
in.” He also binds himself not to disclose or make known his process
to any other persons during the continuance of these articles, nor
to bequeath, sell, or communicate them to any persons, so as to take
place after his death, unless the articles are cancelled during his
lifetime. The agreement was to continue in force so long as Duesbury
and Heath determined to carry on the business according to his process;
and whenever they should decline doing so, then Holdship was to be at
liberty to sell or communicate his process to any one else. At Derby,
Holdship also printed stoneware. As I have stated in my account of
the Derby china works, the printed ware did not appear to meet Mr.
Duesbury’s views, or to be so advantageous as the higher class of
goods painted by hand, for which he was famed, and thus there were
constant complaints and recriminations passing between Holdship and
his employers. From some of the documents I glean that his process was
“for printing enamell and blew;” that he had an assistant named William
Underwood; that he valued his press at £10 10_s._; offered his
“utensils and copper engraved plates at half prime cost;” that his
“enamell collours, weight 151 lbs.,” he valued at £35, including his
process for making the same; and that he proposes to “yield his process
for printing enamell and blew, for which he hath been offered several
hundred pounds.” How long the agreement continued I cannot say, but at
all events, Holdship was still employed at Derby at the end of 1769.
Of much of the work of Robert Hancock, fortunately, there can be no
possible doubt, for his name appears in full on some examples, and his
initials--at least, initials believed to be his--on others. These will
be seen in the accompanying engraving:--
[Illustration: Figs. 515 to 517.]
Two of these, it will be seen, are somewhat curious, having the Chelsea
anchor attached to the name of Worcester. It is a problem worth solving
whether this monogram of RH conjoined was that of Robert Hancock, and,
if so, whether he had previously been connected with the Chelsea works;
or whether the anchor was adopted as a mark by Richard Holdship in
allusion to his name, _hold ship_, which, it must be admitted, would
be a clever and very appropriate colophon. The engraving, looked at
as engraving alone, upon some of the pieces of this period, is truly
beautiful and sharp; but when considered as _transfer_ on to china
paste, is very wonderful.
In Mr. Binns’s possession is a watch-back of Battersea enamel, transfer
printed, bearing the initials “R. H. f.” The subject was a popular one
for china and enamels, and was frequently reproduced.
[Illustration: Fig. 518.]
Richard Hancock, it is supposed, was employed at Battersea before
coming to Worcester, where he must have been settled before the date
(1757) of the poem just quoted. He was an excellent engraver, as
the watch-back (Fig. 518) will testify. Examples of his engravings,
transferred on to _Chinese_ porcelain, are also preserved, and are
considered to be his trial pieces from transferring on to this material.
The copper plate itself from which these foreign china specimens as
well as many of the choicest known examples of Worcester china have
been printed, I had myself the good fortune to discover a few years ago
at Coalport. It bears the engraver’s name--_R. Hancock fecit_.
[Illustration:
VOL. I.
PLATE II.
HANCOCK’S ORIGINAL ENGRAVINGS, FROM CAUGHLEY AND COALPORT.
(The central group bears his name. “R. Hancock, _fecit_.” See pp.
234, 270.)]
I know, for the first time such a thing has been done, give as an
illustration (on Plate II.) impressions actually printed from this very
plate engraved by Hancock a century ago.[81] On the same plate,
it will be noticed, is another engraving by Hancock, of a group of
children playing at “Blind Man’s Buff,” which collectors will recognise
as occasionally occurring on rare examples. On Plates III. and IV. I
also give, for the first time, impressions from other copper plates,
to which I shall make allusion later on. Among Hancock’s pupils were
Valentine Green, the historian of Worcester; James Ross, who earned
a considerable local reputation; and, it is believed, Thomas Turner,
afterwards of the Caughley china works. In 1769 Hancock purchased
from the mortgagees of Richard Holdship the buildings he had erected,
and became a partner in the china works; in which he held a sixth
share. The partnership, however, did not last long, and in 1774 he
was “paid out,” as appears by the following entry:--“Whereas certain
controversies, differences, and disputes had arisen between the parties
touching the said Robert Hancock’s share of the said stock, it was
agreed by indenture, dated October 31, 1774, in order to prevent all
such disputes, to purchase from him his share in said stock for the sum
of £900, being exactly one-sixth.” Hancock, it is said, left the works
in the same year, 1774. The group (Fig. 517) exhibits a selection of
the early transfer-printing examples of Hancock’s work and that of his
clever contemporaries.
[Illustration: Fig. 519.--Worcester Transfer Printing.]
A few years before the Chelsea works passed into the hands of Duesbury
of Derby, it appears that some of the workmen migrated to Worcester,
and this circumstance gave a fresh impetus to the manufacture of
porcelain in that city, and enabled the proprietors of the works to
produce many exquisite articles after the Dresden and Sèvres schools of
art. Some examples of this Chelsea style are shown grouped on Fig. 520.
In 1776 Dr. Wall died, and was buried at the Abbey Church, Bath, in
which city he had resided for some time for the benefit of his impaired
and declining health. Soon after this time the works began to decline;
the goods produced were far inferior to those made in former years,
and their whole style, body, and finish showed an evident falling off
in the management of the works. It is surely not too much to attribute
this decadence in a great degree to the loss of the master mind of Dr.
Wall.
[Illustration: Fig. 520.--Worcester China in the Chelsea style.]
After many changes in proprietorship,[82] the Worcester works, in 1783,
were purchased by Mr. T. Flight, a merchant of Bread Street, London,
and of Hackney (who was agent to the Worcester Porcelain Company), for
his sons, Joseph and John, for the sum of £3,000, including premises,
models, plant, and stock, and here he established them. These two
brothers were jewellers, and carried on both concerns at the same time.
Under their management the works rapidly more than regained their
former eminence, and became very successful. The mark used by Messrs.
Flight was as follows--simply the name in writing letters. Another mark
of this period was the name _FLIGHTS_, in italic capitals, impressed
on the ware, sometimes with the crescent painted in blue. In 1786
Joseph Flight, one of the partners, “jeweller and china manufacturer,”
advertised that he had taken Mr. Bradley’s shop, 33, High Street.
Shortly afterwards he removed to larger premises, No. 45, where he
received the king and queen.
[Illustration: Fig. 521.]
[Illustration: Figs. 522 and 523.]
[Illustration: Figs. 524 to 526.]
In 1788 an event of great importance to the works occurred. In that
year the king, George III., with Queen Charlotte and the princesses,
visited Worcester, and having gone through the porcelain works, and
been much pleased with the beauty of the articles manufactured, his
majesty desired that the word “royal” might be prefixed to the name,
and recommended the proprietors to open a show-room in London. This
suggestion was at once acted upon, and a warehouse opened in Coventry
Street, which secured a large and very fashionable patronage for the
ware. After the king’s visit the distinctive mark of a crown was added
to the marks, which at this time were the following. The subsequent
changes in the proprietorship, consequent on deaths, were “Messrs.
Flight and Barr”--Mr. Martin Barr having joined the concern in
1793--“Barr, Flight, and Barr,” and “Flight, Barr, and Barr” (Joseph
Flight, Martin Barr, and Martin Barr, jun., and afterwards George
Barr in place of the elder Martin). From 1829 till 1840 the firm was
simply “Barr and Barr,” the parties being Martin and George Barr. Some
of the marks I here give. Others, which were _printed_ marks, it is
scarcely worth while to engrave; they are as follows:--“_Flight, Barr,
and Barr_”--B, the initial of Barr, scratched in the ware; “Barr,
Flight, and Barr, Royal Porcelain Works, Worcester; London House, No.
1, Coventry Street,” in five lines, and surmounted by two crowns;
“B.F.B.,” imprint on the ware: “Barr, Flight, and Barr, Royal Porcelain
Works, Worcester; London House, Flight and Barr, Coventry Street”
(within an oval), “Manufacturers to their Majesties, Prince of Wales,
and Royal Family; established 1751” (surrounding the oval); the whole
surmounted by a crown and the Prince of Wales’s feathers: “Flight,
Barr, and Barr, Proprietors of the Royal Porcelain Works, Worcester,
established 1761,” in five lines; above are the royal arms, and
beneath are the Prince of Wales’s feathers, the whole within a circle;
surrounding the circle is, “Manufacturers to their Majesties and the
Prince Regent; London Warehouse, No. 1, Coventry Street.”
In 1786, Robert Chamberlain, who was the first apprentice to the old
Worcester Porcelain Company, and who had continued with the different
proprietors up to that period, commenced business for himself in
premises at Diglis--the same which are now carried on by the Royal
Worcester Porcelain Company. Chamberlain was a painter, and on the
first establishment of his business bought his porcelain from the
Caughley works (Coalbrookdale) and painted it at Worcester. In a
very short time, however, he made his own, and his works soon grew
into public favour and eminence. His son was an excellent artist,
and a portrait of the Princess Charlotte, which he painted, is said
to have given the highest satisfaction to Prince Leopold and others.
The mark adopted by Chamberlain was simply his name in writing, thus,
“_Chamberlain’s_,” or “Chamberlains completes the sentence. Worcester”. Afterwards the
following marks were used:--
[Illustration:
_Chamberlain’s,
Worcester,
& 63, Piccadilly,
London._
_Chamberlain’s
Regent China,
Worcester,
& 155,
New Bond Street,
London._
_Chamberlain’s,
Worcester,
& 155,
New Bond Street,
London.
Royal Porcelain Manufactory._
CHAMBERLAINS.
_Chamberlain & Co., Worcester._
CHAMBERLAIN & CO.,
WORCESTER,
155, NEW BOND STREET,
& NO. 1,
COVENTRY ST.,
LONDON.
Figs. 527 to 536.]
As a companion picture to the fac-simile of Dr. Wall’s works I give
views of those of Chamberlain’s (Fig. 537), and, later, of Flight and
Barr’s, the latter copied from an engraving transferred to porcelain.
From these the extensive character of the place will be seen. It
has, however, been much increased since the amalgamation of the two
establishments, and within the last few years has been almost entirely
rebuilt by the present proprietors.
[Illustration: Fig. 537.--Chamberlain’s Worcester Porcelain
Works.]
The business was afterwards carried on successively by “Chamberlain and
Sons” and “Chamberlain and Co.” During the continuance of the two works
it is believed that by far the greater part of the entire production of
porcelain in the kingdom was made at Worcester; and certainly the books
and the samples of various sets still remaining in the show-rooms bear
evidence both of the high patronage and the extent of orders received,
and of the beauty of workmanship which the proprietary had attained
in their ware. The successive changes in the proprietary were as
follows:--1786–1798, Robert Chamberlain, senior, Humphrey Chamberlain,
and Richard Nash (sleeping partner); 1798–1804, Humphrey Chamberlain
and Robert Chamberlain, junior; 1804–1811, the same, with G. E. Boulton
as sleeping partner; 1811–1827, the same, without Boulton; 1828–1840,
Walter Chamberlain and John Lilly. The marks then used, from 1840 to
1850, being _Chamberlain & Co., Worcester_, in writing italics, and
CHAMBERLAIN’S in capital letters.
In 1800, a third china manufactory was established in Worcester by
Mr. Thomas Grainger, nephew of Humphrey Chamberlain, who had for many
years taken an active and principal part in Chamberlain’s works. This
establishment, of which a few words anon, is still continued by the son
of its founder and partners under the firm of “G. Grainger and Co.”
[Illustration: Fig. 538.]
[Illustration: Figs. 539 to 545.--Productions of Messrs.
Chamberlain, 1851.]
The two principal manufactories, those of “Flight, Barr, and Barr,” and
“Chamberlain and Co.,” continued until 1840, when they amalgamated, and
the two firms formed one joint-stock company. The plant and stock were
removed from Warmstry House to Messrs. Chamberlain’s premises, and the
works were there carried on under the style of “Chamberlain and Co.”
The mark used by Chamberlain and Co. was as follows:--
From 1840 to 1847 the managing directors were Walter Chamberlain,
John Lilly, and Martin and George Barr, and Fleming St. John; from
1848 to 1850 the proprietors were Walter Chamberlain and John Lilly;
in 1850, Walter Chamberlain and Edward Lilly. In 1850 Mr. W. H. Kerr
joined the concern, which was for a short time carried on under the
style of “Chamberlain, Lilly, and Kerr;” but on the 1st of January,
1852, another change took place in the proprietary. On this occasion
Mr. Chamberlain and Mr. Lilly retired, and Mr. R. W. Binns entered into
partnership with Mr. Kerr, and the firm was carried on under the style
of “Kerr and Binns,” and “W. H. Kerr and Co.” In 1852 the works were
considerably increased, in fact they may almost be said to have been
then rebuilt, by Mr. Kerr, whose great desire was to make them the best
constructed, and most roomy and convenient, of any porcelain works in
the kingdom. In 1862 Mr. Kerr retired from the concern, and it is now
carried on by a company of shareholders, Mr. R. W. Binns, F.S.A., who
is one of them, holding the proud position of “Art Director,” a post
for which no man is better qualified than he is. The total number of
hands employed at the present time is between five and six hundred.
[Illustration: Fig. 546.]
[Illustration: Figs. 547 and 548.--Ewer and Stand, painted by
Bott.]
The productions of the Worcester works have been brought to a wondrous
state of perfection, both as to body, glaze, form, and decoration.
Certainly neither in ancient nor in modern specimens of ceramic
art have such exquisitely beautiful works been produced as some of
the enamels which, under the fostering hand of Mr. Binns, have of
late years been made here. The body, unlike the works of Limoges or
the Sèvres imitations, is _pure porcelain_, not a coating of
porcelain over sheets of metal; and the effect is produced by the
partial transparency of the white laid on the blue ground, instead
of by heightening. The tone produced in these enamels is peculiarly
soft and delicate, and the colours are pure and intense; they will
bear--and bear well--a close and critical comparison with those of
the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.[83] Examples consisting of an
ewer and stand, a vase, a pastile-burner, a plate, a tazza, and other
articles, are given on Figs. 547 to 553. The late Mr. Bott, an artist
of the very highest eminence, was brought up by Mr. Binns specially
for the production of these enamels, and his early death has been a
great loss to Art. Through his death examples have become very scarce,
and realise high prices. At the present time a pair of vases--still
in the hands of the Worcester Company--are valued at 1,500 guineas,
and an ewer and basin at 350 guineas, and the probability is that they
will still increase rapidly in value. To Mr. Binns is entirely due the
introduction and carrying out of the Worcester enamels in the style of
Limoges; the ivory porcelain, a soft-glaze body of an ivory tint; the
Raphaelesque porcelain; jewelled porcelain, of a totally different and
far higher character than that of Sèvres; and Japanese decoration on
porcelain and pottery. Besides these, to his taste, skill, and judgment
are due the great varieties of styles and improvements in form and
decoration which now characterize these works.
In parian, the Worcester works produce a large variety of figures,
busts, groups, and ornamental articles of every kind, and of a
remarkably clean and pure body.
The ivory porcelain--an improvement upon parian, and capable of greater
development--is one of the specialities of these works. Besides being
used for busts, figures, and ornamental pieces, in its simple state,
when it has all the softness, beauty, and natural tint of ivory
itself, it forms the basis of many of the ornamental decorations,
especially the Raphaelesque ware, which is the colouring of the surface
in relief in the style of the old Capo di Monte ware and the Buen
Retiro porcelain. This style was first introduced by Mr. Binns for the
Exhibition of 1862, and has retained its popularity to the present hour.
[Illustration: Fig. 549.]
[Illustration: Figs. 550 to 552.--Enamel; the subject taken
from the Raphael Tazza.]
[Illustration: Fig. 553.--Group of Worcester Porcelain Enamel.]
[Illustration: Figs. 554 and 555.]
The jewelled porcelain, for which Worcester now is famous, is totally
different from that made at Sèvres or Tournay, whether ancient or
modern. The French jewels are all made by enamellers, and each colour
is fused on a small plate of metal which forms the setting, and may be
stuck on the vase or plate with gum if it is not required to pass it
through the fire. These jewels may be bought by the dozen or hundred in
any variety: but the work decorated with them is essentially French,
and tinselly. The English jewelling, though perhaps not so brilliant,
is of far higher and purer character, and is far more legitimate
as a decoration for pottery. Each of these jewels is formed of colour
melted on to the china, and occasionally raised higher and higher by
repeated firings, and thus it becomes, and is, a part of the material
itself. The most elaborate piece of work produced at Worcester in
this style is a déjeûner set made for presentation to the Countess of
Dudley on her marriage, from the city of Worcester. It is powdered
all over with turquoise, but so arranged in geometric lines that only
the different sizes of the jewels are noticed. In Japanese porcelain
the Worcester works produce a vast variety of articles; amongst these
are vases, spill-cases, jardinières, toilet ornaments, trays, and
an infinite number of other elegancies. These Japanese productions
are not servile imitations of native art; they are Japanese art and
art-characteristics adapted and rendered subservient to the highest
aims of pure design of our own country. Mr. Binns, to whom this
introduction is owing, has caught the very spirit of Japanese art,
and, with the happy facility he possesses of turning everything to
good account, has so grafted it upon English productions that the
one becomes an essential and component part of the other. Among the
more pleasing and characteristic of the vases are a set on which the
designs, in relief (admirably modelled by Mr. Hadley) upon tablets,
represent the various processes of the potter’s art as followed in the
East; and these pictures--for true pictures they are--are so minutely
and exquisitely painted and gilded (by Callowhill), that it requires
a good lens to bring out their many and very minute beauties. Of
these I give some engravings. This introduction, which now forms a
distinctive feature of the Worcester works, is a marked and decided
advance in ceramic art; the effect of bronze and other metals being
quite an achievement.
[Illustration: Figs. 556 to 559.--Worcester Japanese Ware.]
[Illustration: Figs. 560 to 565.--Worcester Porcelain.]
[Illustration: Fig. 566.]
In majolica the Worcester works produce many splendid varieties of
articles, and many spirited and beautiful designs. Dessert services,
floral table decorations, shell-pieces, spill-cases, and vases are
among the articles produced. The body is finer and more compact than
that frequently used by manufacturers, and the colouring is faultless
and in the purest taste. It was a wise thought to graft this branch of
ceramic art on to that of the finest porcelain at Worcester, and its
rapid development shows how thoroughly it has been appreciated.
But it is not in ornamental goods only that these works take high rank.
They produce every possible variety, from the simple gold and white
to the most highly decorated tea, coffee, déjeûner, dinner, toilet,
and other services. These are produced in very large quantities, and
form a staple and constantly increasing branch of the manufacture; and
in all these, however simple, the same purity of taste in patterns is
displayed as in the rarer and more costly gems of art.
It is a common belief that high art and commercial success cannot go
hand in hand,--that to make things _sell_ you must sink _art_--or that,
if you produce high art examples, you must give up all expectations of
a remunerative trade. This theory I do not believe in. I hold it to be
the mission of the manufacturer, in whatever branch he may be engaged,
to produce such goods as shall tend to educate the public taste, and to
lead it gradually upwards to a full appreciation of the beautiful. The
manufacturer is quite as much a _teacher_ as the writer or the artist,
and he is frequently a much more effectual one. In pottery especially,
where the wares of one kind or other are hourly in the hands of
every person in the kingdom, it behoves the manufacturers to produce
such perfect forms, and to introduce such ornamentation, even in the
commonest and coarsest ware, as shall teach the eye, and induce a taste
for whatever is beautiful and perfect and lovely in art. The mission
of the manufacturer is to _create_ a pure taste, not to perpetuate
and pander to a vicious and barbarous one; and I believe, in the end,
that those who do their best to elevate the minds of the people by
this means will find that, commercially, their endeavours will be most
satisfactory--assuredly they will be the most pleasant to their own
minds. The Worcester people seem to understand this thoroughly, and to
have wisely determined that nothing, even of the most simple design or
common use, which is not pure in taste and elegant in form shall be
issued from their works.
The marks of Messrs. Kerr and Binns were the following:--[Illustration:
Figs. 567 and 568.] But they had also another, a special mark, designed
by Digby Wyatt, which is used solely for marking the goods made for her
Majesty. In the mark (Fig. 568) in the third quarter of the shield,
left white in the engraving, the initials of Mr. Bott, the painter, are
found on his beautiful enamels.
[Illustration: Fig. 569.]
[Illustration: Fig. 570.--Breakfast Service made for the Duke
of Cumberland in 1806.]
[Illustration: Fig. 571.--Service made for King William IV. in
1831.]
[Illustration: Fig. 572.--Service made for the Princess
Charlotte on her marriage in 1816.]
[Illustration: Fig. 573.--Service made on the occasion of the
creation of the Duke of Clarence in 1789.]
The Worcester works have, at one time or other, been favoured more than
most English establishments with orders from royalty. Of these I give
five examples of plates, to show the beauty and intricacy of their
designs. Fig. 569 is a part of a service made for the Queen; Fig. 573,
from the service made for Prince William Henry, Duke of Clarence, in
1789; 572, for the Princess Charlotte on her marriage; 571 for his
Majesty King William IV.; and 570, for the Duke of Cumberland in 1806.
[Illustration: Fig. 574.]
A curious feature in connection with these works, and one which I am
only aware has been followed by one other English china manufactory
(that of Pinxton), was the issuing of porcelain tokens--that is, china
money--for the convenience of the masters and workmen at the factory.
They are, it will be seen, in the form of a promissory note. They bear
the “promise” on the obverse, and on the reverse the letters W P C
(Worcester Porcelain Company), and were issued for various amounts.
[Illustration: Fig. 575.]
Examples of some of the more recent productions of the Royal Worcester
Porcelain Company (as shown at the French Exhibition of 1868) are shown
on our cuts, Figs. 560 to 565.
* * * * *
_Royal China Works._--The porcelain works of Messrs. Grainger and
Co. are situated in St. Martin’s Street, with show-rooms in the
Foregate. They were established in 1800, as I have before stated, by
Mr. Thomas Grainger, nephew to Mr. Chamberlain, to whom he served an
apprenticeship as a painter; the latter part of his apprenticeship
being devoted to taking a share in the general management of the
works. When out of his time, Mr. Grainger started a manufactory on
his own account, and took into partnership a Mr. Wood, a painter
of considerable skill and eminence, whose productions on the early
porcelain made by them are characterized by a peculiar mellowness
of shade, and who excelled in “mezzo-tint drawing;” and the works
were carried on for some time under the firm of “Grainger and Wood.”
Afterwards, Mr. Grainger took into partnership his brother-in-law, Mr.
Lee, and the style of the firm was then changed to that of “Grainger
and Lee.” The mark was as appended.
[Illustration: Fig. 576.]
[Illustration: Fig. 577.]
In 1810, about two years before Mr. Lee became a partner, the works
were destroyed by fire. The manufactory was shortly rebuilt on a new
site, on the opposite side of the street, and has been considerably
enlarged. Mr. Lee having retired from the concern, the business was
then carried on by Mr. Grainger until his decease in 1839, when his
son, Mr. George Grainger, one of the present proprietors, succeeded
him, and has carried on the works, under the style of “G. Grainger and
Co.,” to the present day. Up to the year 1850, porcelain alone was made
at this establishment, and its quality was remarkably good, both in
body and in ornamentation. In that year, however, Mr. George Grainger
invented a new body, which he named “_semi-porcelain_.” This new
ware was first made public at the Great International Exhibition of
1851, and from its peculiar qualities of durability, hardness, and
freedom from cracking with heat, attracted considerable attention. The
surface of the semi-porcelain bears every characteristic of the finest
china, and, of course, in colour, in painting, and in gilding can be
made quite equal to it; but it has the additional advantage of being
so completely vitrified that the inside, in case of being chipped or
broken, remains of its original whiteness. It is peculiarly adapted for
dinner-services through not flying or cracking with heat so readily as
the ordinary china does, and because of its power of retaining heat
for a much longer time. It is somewhat extensively exported both to
France and to India. Mr. Grainger manufactures very largely of this
material chemical vessels, batteries, insulators for telegraph wires,
&c., and for these purposes its superiority is admitted by the highest
scientific authorities. These insulators (in an unglazed state) after
being soaked for many hours in acid, stood the test of a battery of
two hundred Daniel’s cells--a very severe test--showing thus great
strength and resisting power--a strength which would be much increased
when glazed.
[Illustration: C. GRAINGER &. C. MANUFACTURERS WORCESTER.
Fig. 578.]
The mark of the present firm is as follows:--[see Fig. 578] Another has
simply the words “Chemical Porcelain, Grainger and Co., Manufactory,
Worcester.” Messrs. Grainger and Co. also produce some admirable vases,
excellent parian figures and ornaments. Another variety of goods is
the perforated parian ware, in which is made vases, &c., of remarkably
pure design and careful execution. Some of the best specimens of lace
drapery have been produced by this firm. At the Exhibition of 1862, the
last at which the firm exhibited, a medal was awarded them for this
“semi-” or “chemical porcelain,” which, undeniably, well deserved such
a distinction.
[Illustration: Fig. 579.]
The toilet services of this firm are of considerable elegance in
design, as will be seen on Figs. 581 and 582. Fig. 580 exhibits a
“honeycombed” coffee-service of very elegant design, the foliage being
gracefully thrown.
[Illustration: Figs. 580 to 583.]
A new invention of Messrs. Grainger is their “Opalite,” a highly
vitrified and very fine body, in which they have produced, with
remarkably good effect, embossed tiles for external decorations in
shop fronts, &c. A design of a celadon ground with the blackberry,
conventionally treated, in relief, in white, with the stems relieved
with burnished gold, burned into the body, is remarkably beautiful and
effective.
* * * * *
_Mr. St. John’s Encaustic Tile Works._--After the removal of Messrs.
Flight and Barr’s works to the present site of the Royal porcelain
manufactory, on the amalgamation spoken of on a preceding page, Mr.
Barr for a time continued making encaustic paving tiles on the old
premises. In this he was joined by Mr. Fleming St. John, who was one of
the managing directors of the Royal porcelain works, and some excellent
patterns, and of good colour and material, were produced. The tile
works were, however, in 1860, sold to Messrs. Maw, who continued to
carry on the manufacture until 1852, when they removed to Broseley,
where the manufacture is still continued (see “Broseley”). In 1853 the
premises were purchased from Mr. Fleming St. John by Mr. Allcroft,
one of the partners in the firm of Dent, Allcroft, and Co., and their
business of glove-making was removed within the same year.
* * * * *
_“Worcester Tileries,” Rainbow Hill._--These works were established in
1870 by Mr. H. C. Webb, their present proprietor. The tiles produced
are in three series--1st, geometrical tiles in five colours, viz.
black, red, buff, grey, and chocolate; 2nd, geometrical tiles in these
colours with the addition of cream, fawn, blue, white, and green;
3rd, the whole of these, with encaustic or inlaid tiles added. The
geometrical tiles are made of various sizes and of every necessary
shape, and thus pavements of admirable and effective design and of
endless variety are produced, which are equally suitable for small
villas, cottages, schools, &c. The colours are clear and good, and the
quality hard and durable. The mark used by Mr. Webb is the name HENRY
C. WEBB, WORCESTER, in raised letters, in a small circle impressed in
the clay.
* * * * *
_St. George’s Pottery Works._--These works were established by
their present proprietor, Mr. D. W. Barker, formerly of Frome
in Somersetshire, in 1869, for the manufacture of rustic ware,
terra-cotta, and patent bricks--the latter being the main production
of the establishment. The works are situated on Gregory’s Bank, close
to the canal, on the north side of Worcester, where they occupy a
large area of ground. The kilns were erected from the designs of the
patentees, Hoffman and Licht, of Berlin and Dantzic, and the machinery
by the patentees, Bradley and Craven, of Wakefield. As these are said
to be among the best constructed of modern brick and terra-cotta works,
I quote the following particulars:--
“The kiln consists of a long railway-tunnel-shaped passage,
forming a long annular channel or ring. This ring is divided
into twelve compartments, which may be made to communicate or
to be separated from each other by the raising or lowering
of a partition or damper. To each compartment there is an
entrance-doorway, which can be closed with temporary brickwork.
Flues lead from the bed of each compartment to the central
smoke-chamber, which communicates by a main flue with the
chimney. The state and progress of the fire can be at any time
easily seen through the apertures on the top, down which the
fuel is passed; and as the draught is under perfect control, the
heat can be at once raised or lowered as may be required. The
low temperature at which the gases leave the kiln is indicated
by the fact that a high chimney for getting up the draught is
required. There is thus a perpetual current, so to say, of
bricks, which is brought slowly to revolve against, and in the
contrary direction to, a perpetually revolving draught. In the
green stage of the bricks they thus come in contact with air
at a comparatively low temperature, and then gradually advance
towards higher temperatures until they are at last burnt. Each
stack of bricks to be burnt is, therefore, most ingeniously made
to combine successively--(1) the functions of a grate with bars;
(2) of a Leimen’s regenerator, for heating the air to be burnt;
(3) of a drying-room for themselves when green; and (4) of a
cooling-room for themselves when burnt. It is impossible not to
enjoy the examination of such an exemplification of the dominion
of mind over matter. Each day one chamber is emptied of its
burnt and cooled-down bricks, and another chamber is filled with
green goods. Any repairs can also be at once done to any one of
the chambers as it gets emptied in its turn. In every process of
treating clay or marl, with a view to drying it in the open air
or to burning it, it is absolutely necessary to carry out these
operations gradually at the risk of cracking and splitting the
goods. This kiln, from its very gradual action and absence of
sudden changes of temperature, produces no “wasters” from these
causes, and the bricks can also be burnt in a much more moist
state than in ordinary kilns, as the heat is very gradually
brought to bear upon them. The extraordinary and widespread
success of the patent annular kilns, the beauty of the
scientific principles they so ingeniously embody, and the many
fresh applications of which they are capable, are well deserving
a careful study. In all there are not less than five hundred of
these kilns at work in different parts of the world--Europe, the
United States, India, and Australia. In England and her colonies
alone there are upwards of ninety in use, and the power of
production, within merely England and Ireland, can be reckoned
at nearly one million of bricks _daily_. Our Admiralty use five,
the Indian Government already six. In the Patent Kiln there is
an important source of saving in the fact that the moisture is
driven into the chimney, and is never carried over the fuel,
uselessly conveying away, as it would do, enormous amounts of
latent heat. The chimney, which rises from the centre of the
kiln, is of a circular form, about 160 feet in height, 21 feet 6
inches in diameter at the base, and 7 feet 6 inches at the top.”
The analysis of the clay, as reported by Dr. Arthur E. Davis, is as
follows:--silica, 56·74; alumina, 31·66; oxide of iron, 6·96; lime,
3·43; magnesia, trace; alkaline salts, 0·53; loss in analysis, 0·68;
total, 100·00.
The rustic terra-cotta ware produced at these works is of a very
superior quality, and the designs are so true to nature as to be
faultless in every respect. In this ware garden-seats, flower-pots,
and flower-vases, mignonette and other boxes, spill-cases, and a
variety of other articles have been made, and all are equally good in
design. Among the rustic flower-pots and stands some are excellent
representations of the gnarled root of a tree; the small branches
of trees nailed to the sides of the vessel; and the bole of a tree
beautifully modelled, and apparently hollowed out to receive the plant.
In these cases the grain of the wood is well copied. Mr. Barker’s great
forte in these designs seems to have been the accurate and truthful
copying of nature in the barks and peculiarities of growth of various
trees.
Mr. Barker manufactures the ceramic part of Beckitt’s patent
photographic apparatus--an apparatus consisting of an earthenware
cylinder and a series of troughs of the same material, in which the
cylinder is made to revolve by means of a handle; the troughs being
intended for the hyposulphate bath, the gold solution, and wash,
respectively.
Ordinary flower-pots and other horticultural ware, of good quality and
excellent material, are extensively made, and form a staple branch of
the St. George’s trade.
STOURBRIDGE.
The _Lye Works_ have the reputation of being the oldest in this
district, having been established in 1750. Its present proprietors
are Messrs. William King Perrens, of Wilmcote Hall, and George King
Harrison, of Hagley. They are makers of fire-bricks of all kinds, blast
furnaces, glass-house furnaces, gas retorts, gas ovens, &c., and are
proprietors of best Glasshouse pot-clay.
The other makers at Stourbridge are--
F. T. Rufford Hungary Hill.
Hickman & Co. Haygreen and Brettell Lane Works.
Perrens & Harrison The Lye and Brettell Lane Works.
E. H. J. Pearson The Delph and Tintern Abbey Works.
Jas. B. Fisher & Co. The Hayes.
Mobberley & Bayley The Thorns and Cradley.
King Brothers Netherend.
Harris & Pearson Amblecote.
Edward Bowen Clattershall.
John Hall Amblecote and Bug Hole.
Trotter, Haines & Corbett Brettell Lane.
AND
John Walker Kingswinford, near Dudley.
The Himley Fire Brick Company Near Dudley.
I am indebted to Mr. George King Harrison, of the “Lye Works,”
Stourbridge, for the following interesting particulars respecting
Stourbridge clay. He says--
“The earliest account I have been able to obtain respecting
Stourbridge fire-clay shows that, in the year 1566, a lease
was granted for the purpose of getting and digging Glasshouse
pot-clay. It is probable at that time it had only recently been
discovered, and that its peculiar properties and purity, with
the well-known abundance of fuel in the neighbourhood, were the
causes of the establishment of the glass manufacture, which was
introduced by refugees from Lorraine about 1557. It is believed
that one of the first glasshouses was erected in a field (near
to Stourbridge Station), and which is known by the name of the
Glasshouse Field at the present time; an old plan shows the
position of the works, foundations of furnaces, and portion of
old furnace.”
Dr. Plot, in his “History of Staffordshire,” date about 1686, says--
“The most preferable clay of any is that of Amblecote, of a
dark blewish colour, whereof they make the best pots for the
glasshouses of any in England; nay, so very good is it for this
purpose that it is sold in the place for 7_d._ the bushel,
whereof Mr. Gray (an ancestor of the present Earl of Stamford
and Warrington) has 6_d._ and the workman 1_d._, and so very
necessary to be had that it is sent as far as London, some time
by waggon and some time on pack horses to Bewdley, and so down
the Severn to Bristol, and thence to London.” “The goodness of
which clay and cheapness of coal hereabouts no doubt has drawn
the glasshouses both for vessels and broad glass into these
parts, there being divers set up in different forms here at
Amblecote, Oldwynford, Hollowaysend, and Coburnbrook.”
Stourbridge clay (_properly so called_) is found only in a
comparatively small district, say within a circle of not more than two
miles, taking the valley of the Stour at the Lye as the centre, and
at depths varying from three or four yards from the surface to one
hundred and eighty yards; its position in the strata is in all cases
below the thick coal, at distances varying from twelve to twenty-five
yards; and it is generally overlaid by a shaly, friable kind of coal,
called “batts,” from twelve to twenty-four inches thick. The thickness
of the seam varies very much, rarely exceeding thirty-six to forty-two
inches, and sometimes thinning down to five or six inches when close
to faults or small disturbances in the measures. The quality is very
variable, in some instances as hard as stone, having to be blasted
with powder, and in others soft and easily workable. There is a great
variation in its component parts, arising principally in the proportion
of silica; a clay containing only about fifty per cent. of silica being
very inferior, and contracting very much on exposure to intense heat.
In order to show this difference in a practical form I have had eight
clays from as many mines in the Stourbridge district, prepared under
precisely similar circumstances, subjected to the same heat, and all
burnt in the kiln at one time. The result showing the great variation
and power of resisting heat, since, in the eight samples, hardly two
are of the same weight and size. The eight bricks all made in one mould.
No. 1. No. 2.
4-10/16 × 2-13/16 × 1. 4-11/16 × 2¾ × 1.
15 oz. 1 gr. 16 oz.
No. 3. No. 4.
4¾ × 2-15/16 × 15/16. 4¼ × 2-10/16 × 14/16.
16 oz. 1 gr. 15 oz. 1 gr.
No. 5. No. 6.
4-11/16 × 2-13/16 × 1-1/16. 4-6/16 × 2¾ × 14/16.
17 oz. 2 gr. 15 oz. 1 gr.
No. 7. No. 8.
4-9/16 × 2¾ × 13/16. 4-9/16 × 2¾ × 1.
13 oz. 2 gr. 15 oz. 2 gr.
The usual treatment of clay for glass-house purposes is as follows.
After having been carefully selected, it is broken into small pieces
by women accustomed to its appearance, who throw on one side all
pieces of discoloured and irregular clay; it is finely ground by heavy
edge-runners, and mixed with a certain proportion of ground potsherds
(old broken burnt pots); the proportion of burnt clay varies according
to the purpose for which the clay is to be used; it is then mixed with
water, and tempered with the foot, and allowed to lie a considerable
time--which should not be less than six or seven weeks--when it should
acquire great tenacity before being made into pots.
These pots are built up by hand gradually, great care being taken that
the last layer of clay is not allowed to become hard or dry, or it will
not unite properly; neglect in this respect causing the pot to give way
in the furnace. The pots are dried very gradually, and are seldom fit
for use under six to eight months.
The clay, after the selection of the best pot-clay, is allowed to lie
in large heaps, subjected to the action of the atmosphere, and is then
used in the manufacture of gas-retorts, fire-bricks, &c. The quantity
of bricks made annually in the Stourbridge district is about fifty
millions.