a very impressive, huge sunderland orange lustre jug with a tinker made copper handle.
this gargantuan jug is decorated on the outside with two transfer prints of sailing ships, two poetic verses and a transfer print of the first Sunderland bridge which was the wear mouth bridge, an iron bridge that opened in 1796, designed by Thomas Paine. It was a major engineering feat at the time, being the largest single-span iron bridge in the world, and was built to accommodate the growth of Sunderland as an industrial centre.
height ... 220mm x 220mm width at its widest point.
sunderland lustre is a type of pottery, primarily dating from the 19th century, known for its iridescent metallic like glaze often in pink, orange, yellow and sometimes purple or violet hues. it features transfer-printed decorations of local landmarks like the wearmouth bridge, ships, and mining scenes, nostalgic scenes such as the sailors return and the sailors farewell and poetic verses, which were then overpainted. the term is now used to describe any lustre pottery from the region, regardless of the exact place of manufacture.
in general sunderland lustre jugs were made by several potteries in the north east of england, with prominent makers including dixon & co., anthony scott and carr and patton. other potteries involved in their production were scott, ball, garrison pottery, maling and dawson.
the jug has a very old and at the time costly tinker made replacement metal handle, the repair gives the jug an even more charming appeal, it has its own unique personality, the repair gives us an insight into its history and the importance and value the owner held for it, the beauty is found because of the break and the subsequent repair, not in spite of it. the "scars and stitches" are a testament to the object's history and resilience.
the use of staples to repair broken ceramics originated in china and was later adopted in england in the 18th century for the repair of important and valuable pottery, becoming widely used in the 19th century, the process dying out with the introduction of suitable adhesives.
