Stoneware Salt-glazed Slender Jug
MakerMade by
Ray Finch
(London, England, 1914 - 2012)
MakerMade at
Winchcombe Pottery
(Winchcombe, England, founded 1926)
StudentTaught by
Michael Cardew
(Wimbledon, London, England, 1901 - 1983)
StudentTaught by
Dora Billington
(Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent, 1890 - 1968)
CollectorCollected by
Sandy Dunbar
(London, England, 1929 - 2012)
Datelate 20th-early 21th Century
Object NameJug
Mediumstoneware, salt-glaze and slip
ClassificationsCeramics
DimensionsOverall (Height x Width incl Handle): 213 x 166 mm,
Base (Diameter): 105 mm
Rim (Diameter): 101 mm
Base (Diameter): 105 mm
Rim (Diameter): 101 mm
AcquisitionThe Sandy Dunbar Studio Ceramics Collection presented in 2023 by Crinan Dunbar and Rebecca Russell.
LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub
Object numberABDMS095708.337
About MeStoneware slender medium jug with short rounded body, long slim neck and collared rim with integral lip. The jug is fully glazed in a grey-white slip with a salt-glazed exterior and final high gloss clear glaze.
It is decorated with a pattern of incised horizontal banding around the collar and five vertical bands of hatched marks running from the rim to the foot, probably created with a roulette. Each of the panels created by the hatching has incised abstract circular marks (one on the neck and two on the body). This decorative motif is also repeated under the handle and beneath the handle terminal.
Ray Finch was one of the UK's leading makers of tableware at the Winchcombe Pottery near Cheltenham, where he led a team of talented potters. He embedded his own work within the standard domestic ware made at the workshop, making a limited number of distinctive larger pieces, including platters and plates. These are marked with his personal modified mark of WP (Winchcombe Pottery) followed by a small dot.
Finch began making this more slender shape of jug in the 1980s. In contrast to the round-bellied jug more commonly made at Winchcombe this style was made in fewer numbers as it is a more challenging shape to make.
