Feature Articles

Pots of Orchids: the Spode Bateman Connection, by Pam Woolliscroft

 Pam writes: I have a fondness for botanical illustration and a passion for pots. It is these personal interests together with my role as Curator at the Spode museum which led to me noticing the elements of this story. It is a tale of discovery - an unexpected connection between a Staffordshire pottery and a Staffordshire plantsman. Read the article.

Surprising Spout Prints, by DeeDee Dodd

Every once in a while, when working as an editor in the TCC Pattern and Source Print Database, one is completely surprised. It might be when a marked piece in a pattern surfaces, and it suddenly becomes possible to identify the maker of that pattern. It might be when one finds evidence of copper plates being purchased by one potter at another potter’s bankruptcy sale, explaining why the patterns of the two potters appear to be identical. It might be when one finds evidence of a pattern being re-issued under a different name decades after it was originally introduced. Or, as in the case at point in this article, it might be when one finds some unexpected pattern anomalies. Read the article.