Stamford.
That pottery was in mediæval times made in Stamford was incontestably proved in the latter end of 1874 by the discovery of a kiln during the course of excavations in the rear of a house occupied by the Rev. E. F. Gretton, formerly Master of the Grammar School there. The kiln was thus described in “The Reliquary,”[104] by Mr. G. H. Burton:—
“On visiting the spot after a clearance had been effected, I found an opening sunk in the ground, 7 feet wide, and as far as excavated, 8 feet 6 inches long. The end that was bared (north) was semicircular; the form of the other could not be seen, though from certain indications I think it would correspond. The bottom was floored with clay, and the lining or ‘bratticing’ of the sides was composed of stones, of irregular shapes and sizes, set in and entirely faced with clay. The layer forming the floor was about three inches thick, and had been burnt to a rather deep red; the coating of the sides was not so highly burnt, indeed; the clay at one part, only a few inches from the face, became perfectly plastic by exposure during a few days’ rain. In this opening, in the direction of its length, was a row of four piers of an extreme height of 3 ft. 8 inches, and about 12 inches or 14 inches thick; their section was something like a square or oblong, slightly rounded at the angles—in some parts resembling a rough circle. These columns were at somewhat irregular distances. That at the north end supported a short, thick lintel, which was connected with the enclosure, and was in a line with the series of piers. The three other columns carried at their heads a slighter lintel. These piers supported four horizontal beams 1 foot wide and 9 inches thick, of an extreme length of 4 feet 6 inches, which spanned the space between the piers and the east side of the opening. Thus the internal arrangement, to use a homely illustration, was pretty much that of a gridiron bent in the middle to the shape of the letter L inverted.
The part enclosed by the piers and beams was of the clear width of 3 feet 6 inches; the space from the piers to the other side was 2 feet 6 inches. This latter is believed to represent the ‘stoke-hole,’ and the unbarred opening, between the two northernmost piers, was perhaps a ‘man-hole.’ I have been told that the four transverse beams had been continued right across the opening, and that on one side they had been accidentally destroyed; but one who was very early on the spot assures me that the piers did not then present the appearance of anything having been broken from them. The columns, the beams, and the lintels were all of clay, burnt in some portions to a light brick red. Their construction seems to have been a rude and simple affair. Sticks or branches of no great thickness were placed in position, and then soft clay was clapped round them until the required massiveness was obtained, when drying and baking would finish the operation, if indeed drying and baking were necessary. Of what the superstructure was composed, and what form it took, I could find nothing to indicate. The floor of the kiln was seven or eight feet from the present surface, and the sides at the highest remaining part rose to a level with the horizontal beams. I should state that in two parallel cuttings, made for the foundations of new buildings, I observed a very thin layer of burnt earth of a light colour, extending nearly to the south end of the excavated remains of the kiln, and at about the same level as the horizontal beams. This would seem to show that when the kiln was in operation the tops of the pillars were on a level with the then surrounding surface. One remarkable circumstance ought, perhaps, to be mentioned. It was found necessary to make a cutting through this kiln, and the excavation revealed the fact, that for at least ten feet beneath the kiln floor there was nothing but ‘made ground,’ as the workmen called it. Other cuttings near disclosed a similar substructure, the loose ground being 20 feet deep.”
The very large and important works of this place owed their origin to Mr. J. M. Blashfield, by whom they were established in 1858. Previous to that time, Mr. Blashfield had been, until 1851, engaged, in Southwark Bridge Road, Albion Place, Blackfriars, and Mill Wall, in the Italian marble trade, and the manufacture of cements and scagliola, and the making and laying down of tessellated pavements, &c. In that year he commenced the manufacture of terra-cotta at Mill Wall, London, having a few years previously purchased a number of the moulds, models, &c., from Coades when that manufactory was closed. In 1858 Mr. Blashfield removed his moulds, models, plant, &c., to Stamford, where a splendid clay for his purpose exists, and where he soon became as successful as such enterprise and ability as his deserved, and where he did more for the development and improvement of the beautiful in art than could otherwise have been accomplished. In 1874 the works merged into a limited liability company, under the style of the “Stamford Terra-Cotta Company,” which failed and was wound up in 1875, when the plant and stock were sold by auction.
Mr. Blashfield’s name is very intimately connected with the subject of encaustic paving-tiles, having been associated with the late Mr. Herbert Minton in their revival. In reference to this the following extract from a paper read by him is interesting:—
“One of the greatest revivals in pottery, connected with architecture, took place about 1833. Mr. Wright, of Shelton, obtained a patent for making inlaid tiles. This patent was bought by the late Mr. Herbert Minton, who improved upon it, and produced the tiles now so commonly used in churches.
“In 1840, Richard Prosser, of Birmingham, took a patent for making buttons in china. In 1841, buttons made from the body of which porcelain is constituted were very largely manufactured by the late Mr. Herbert Minton, under this patent of Prosser’s; and having, myself, for several years, made inlaid pavements and imitations of old mosaic and tesselated work, I conceived that Prosser’s invention would make tesseræ and tiles, and I suggested to Minton and Prosser the enlargement of the patent for this purpose. I then made arrangements to carry out this invention, and laid the first designs and specimens I made before the then President of the Royal Society (the Marquis of Northampton), who kindly permitted me to exhibit them at one of his soirées, at his house in Piccadilly, about the commencement of the year 1843. He then introduced the subject to a great number of noblemen, and especially to his Royal Highness the Prince Consort, who requested an especial account of the process to be written for him, and which was done, and forms now the appendix to the second edition of a work I first published in 1842, through Mr. Owen Jones, on Tesselated Pavements. In 1843, I published a work upon Encaustic Tiles, with ninety-six copies of ancient tiles drawn half the full size, and also designs of pavements. The drawings were arranged and copied on stone by Mr. Owen Jones. I also employed Mr. Lewis, Mr. Kendall, and other architects on the same subject, and especially Mr. Digby Wyatt, who copied for me in Italy the remains of the mosaic works of the Middle Ages, from San Lorenzo, St. Mark’s, and other places; and which has since been drawn on stone, and published by him, under the title of ‘The Geometrical Mosaics of the Middle Ages.’ The Society of Arts, London, also kindly permitted me to lecture on the subject, and constantly to bring it forward—so that, by the end of the year 1845, the trade in tesselated pavements, inlaid tiles, and Venetian floors, had gained a firm footing; but, from various circumstances, and after spending many thousand pounds in bringing the subject fully into notice, I was obliged to surrender all interest in it to the manufacturer, Herbert Minton. Since this date, Minton and Hollins have revived the art of majolica and Palissy ware, and produced the most magnificent specimens, both in point of size and color, ever attained in this description of pottery.”
Fig. 825.
Figs. 826 to 831.—Blashfield’s Stamford Terra Cotta.
Mr. Blashfield further wrote to me:—
“I suggested to Herbert Minton the making of mosaic pavements, and found some of the money and designs for the early development of the pavement business. It was the connection with the pavement business that led me to a knowledge of pottery; and made me turn the moulds and models which I had used for plastic scagliola and cement castings into use for terra-cotta in 1851. I began to form my collection of models in 1831 in the Southwark Bridge Road.”
The productions of this manufactory were terra-cotta as applied to every purpose, glazed or enamelled tiles and bricks for wall-facings, hard ordinary paving tiles, enamelled architectural enrichments for internal use, and red and buff moulded bricks.
In this material, statues, both single figures and groups, busts, vases, tazzas, fountains, pedestals, suspenders, chimney shafts, cornices, consoles, string courses, pateræ, medallions, panels, friezes, capitals and bases, tracery, window and door heads and jambs, balustrades, and every species of architectural decoration were produced in almost endless—and, certainly, as to design, matchless—variety. The vases and tazzæ were most carefully modelled from ancient examples taken from the British and other Museums, and from the standard works of Montfaucon, Winckelmann, Millengen, Raoul Rochette, Dubois-Maisonneuve, Baptista Passerio, D’Hancarville, Piranesi, Tatham, Moses, Sir William Hamilton, Englefield, and others; and many original designs by Mr. Blashfield and other artists were added. These were produced of various sizes, but all of equal excellence. The statues and busts, &c., are clever reproductions of ancient examples, and special works modelled for the purpose by or from Bell, Woodington, Roubilliac, Weigall, Chantrey, and other renowned modern artists.
Among the public buildings which have been enriched by the art works of Mr. Blashfield’s manufactory are the urns, antifixa, and pavements in the Royal Mausoleums, Windsor; vases and terminals, &c., at Buckingham Palace; vases, tazzas, borders, &c., at Kew and Hampton Court Gardens and Dairy Farm, Windsor; colossal statues, fountains, vases, &c., and roofs and other decorations, at the Crystal Palace; chimney shafts, &c., Sandringham; vases and pedestals, Marlborough House; the entire red, buff, grey, and black terra-cotta details and enrichments for Dulwich College; Lady Alford’s mansion, and many other places; and, indeed, for most of the public buildings and private mansions of this country and abroad. Of these, perhaps one of the most important, and which will ever remain a lasting monument of Stamford ceramic art, is the new Dulwich College, erected from designs by Mr. Charles Barry, and entirely composed of terra-cotta. It is the most complete specimen of terra-cotta building in England—no stone whatever being used; the value of the material alone being, in the gross, calculated at £28,000. The whole of this was made at these works.
Figs. 832 to 834.—Blashfield’s Terra Cotta.
In colour and quality the Stamford terra-cotta is of faultless excellence. The details are sharp, and in many cases exquisitely moulded; and, the body being much finer and harder than usual, they have a finish and a “touch” about them that cannot easily be surpassed.
One of the most striking series of subjects produced in terra-cotta was the manufacturing “process panels” on the exterior of the Wedgwood Memorial Institute at Burslem. Three of these are engraved on Figs. [832 to 834]. The whole series, modelled by Mr. Walter J. Morris, illustrate the various processes of the plastic art; those selected for engraving represent “Turning,” “Painting,” and “Firing.” The history of these panels is a somewhat interesting feature as connected with Stamford terra-cotta works, and is worth briefly recording. The whole of the clay for these large panels was prepared at the Stamford works by Mr. Blashfield. A large case, lined with plaster of Paris, was made for each panel; the clay was firmly and evenly pressed into it, and thus each of the twelve was transmitted to South Kensington. Mr. Morris wrought his modelling on the faces of these cases of clay, and they were returned to Stamford when ready for the later process to be accomplished. At Stamford they were cut up in suitable pieces for “firing;” made true (for they had got considerably twisted and warped during the time they were in the modeller’s hands), carefully dried, and burned; the whole series coming out from the kiln in the admirable and perfect state in which they now stand, as monuments of Mr. Blashfield’s ceramic skill, in the Wedgwood Institute. The whole of the operations in producing these panels occupied about twelve months in time, and their cost, of course, was something considerable. They were marked with Mr. Blashfield’s name.
Among the most successful vases was the “Shakspeare vase.” It is of the Medici form, but the general allegorical design and details are Mr. Blashfield’s own. The figures of the allegory, which run round the body of the vase, were modelled by the late Mr. Nixon, who executed the statue of William IV. for the City of London, in conjunction with his father, also a sculptor of eminence. It represents a masque scene from Shakspeare’s Tempest—Prospero, Ferdinand and Miranda, with Juno and Ceres, in front of the vase; Iris at the back, with the reapers, dancers, &c. Caliban forms the part of one handle and Sycorax the other. The whole are moulded in a masterly manner, and the rest of the details of the vase are eminently in keeping with them.
Engravings of some of Mr. Blashfield’s vases are given on Figs. [826 to 835]. Of these, Fig. [827], of novel design, bears powerful medallions of Dante and Petrarch; and Fig. [828] (a flower-pot), those of the Queen and the Prince Consort, and the Emperor and Empress of the French.
Fig. 835.
The marks used were the name, impressed, “J. M. BLASHFIELD,” or “BLASHFIELD, STAMFORD,” or “STAMFORD TERRA COTTA CO. LIMITED.”