The Story of Porcelain

by Sara Ware Bassett

"Can pieces of any design be thrown?" inquired Theo.

"No, only round pieces such as cups, mugs, vases, jars, or bowls. In other words, only circular pieces. Frequently, too, these are only started by the throwing process and are finished by some other means such as turning, for example."

"What is turning?" asked Theo.

"Surely you have seen a turning-lathe, Theo," asserted Mr. Marwood. "Here is a turner just opposite us. You will notice he has a lathe that goes by steam. The vase on which he is working has previously been roughly formed on a jigger—a revolving mould over which a sheet of clay has been pressed and quickly shaped. After such a piece has been dried to a leather hardness the turner takes it in its crude and uncompleted state and by running his lathe over it planes down the surface to a smooth, even thickness. Sometimes, too, by means of one of these lathes milling-tools are used to cut designs around the neck or base of the article. The rough edges are then sponged and before the piece is thoroughly dried handles are put on if desired. Here in America turning is the process very generally employed for finishing articles begun by the jiggermen."

"And now about hollow ware—how do they make that?"

"Hollow ware is pressed by hand," answered Mr. Marwood. "The process is used for pieces that cannot successfully be made by any other means—such things, for example, as soup-tureens and large covered dishes. The idea is to press the clay over or into moulds so it will be the exact shape required. Of course this necessitates the making of pieces in sections. The two sides of a vase are moulded separately, for instance; also the bottom. Then the parts are pressed firmly together and held in place by strings or thongs of leather until securely joined. Afterward the base is inserted in its proper place. The inside seams are then leveled and sponged away, and the mould sent to the drying room. Later it is returned; the outside seams moistened and smoothed; the moulded handles put on; and the piece is ready to be decorated and fired. It is a difficult ware to make, for unless the workmen are skilled at giving the clay an even pressure it is liable to be thicker in some places than others. Sometimes, too, if the seams are not strongly united the article will crack. It demands a strong, even touch. Remember that hollow ware is pressed from the outside; and that flat ware is just the opposite, and is pressed from the inside. The top surfaces of such things as plates, platters and trays are thus formed, their outer side being shaped by hand or by a jolly, which we shall see presently."

Mr. Marwood passed on through the crowded room until he suddenly paused beside a workman at another machine.

"This," explained Theo's conductor, "is a jigger. There are two machines very commonly used in the United States for shaping the cheaper wares: one is a jigger, a device of this type; and the other a jolly, an invention very similar in construction but having a tool attached that forms the outside, or bottom of the piece, the inside of which has previously been shaped by the jigger. You may recall that I spoke of the jigger; and told you how a revolving mould was inserted into it, and how afterward a sheet of clay was laid on the outside of this mould and rapidly shaped. The jolly, on the other hand, is used for making such things as covers, the top surface of which has already been moulded. The profile set in the jolly-lever makes the bottom. That, as I told you, is how we get the base of our plates. For certain articles the jigger is preferred; for certain others the jolly; but the aim of both is the same, and the workers at the machines are all called jiggermen. After an article is taken from the jigger or jolly it is dried and carried to the turning-lathe to have its surface smoothed and finished."

"And does it take all these men to run a jigger?" whispered Theo, pointing to the moving figures that hurried to and fro.

"An organized group of men is employed at each machine," answered Mr. Marwood. "First there is the clay-carrier, who must bring the material to the workmen; then there is a second man called the batter-out who takes from the carrier the piece of clay cut into the proper size, and after laying this on a block gives it a strong blow with a plaster-of-Paris bat to flatten it for the jiggerman. When making simple objects such a man can give the article quite a start even with one stroke. You can see that some such beginning must be made before the jiggermen can handle the material."