WOOD CARVING. MISERERE, ST. DAVID'S CATHEDRAL.
SCANDINAVIAN CLAY VESSEL.
The adaptability and plasticity of clay, again, is shown in what might be called its fundamental capacity as thrown upon the potter's wheel. Here, under the steady revolution of the horizontal circular disk, or wheel, controlled and held in its place by the left hand of the potter, while he manipulates and varies the form with the right, we see how readily the clay obeys the law of the circular pressure and movement, and how, in obedience to it, every variety of form which the history of pottery displays becomes possible to it in the hands of a skilful and tasteful craftsman. Manual skill of a very accomplished kind is demanded in throwing, as anyone may see for himself by trying to form a vessel upon the wheel, simple as the operation looks, controlled by a purely mechanical movement. Then, in addition to dexterity in manipulating the clay and skill in forming the vessel truly, and of an even thickness, there is room for any amount of artistic judgment and taste in deciding the final form, or section, which the vessel shall take; and again, in the design and use of such ornament as shall express its form and office, or give it an additional decorative surface beauty.
With the use of ornament, indented while our clay is soft, or with raised moulding and edges, or low relief work, we are still carrying out the fundamental suggestiveness of the material and what may be called its natural method; and we find that ornamentation upon pottery in its earliest development took the form of indented zigzag borders and patterns, and to this day in some kinds of German pottery, and that known as Grès de Flandres, we find the patterns indented in outline and filled afterwards with the blue colour and glazed; the modern Egyptian red clay pots are ornamented with indented, cut, and raised patterns; while in the homely brown jug of our English potteries, we see the application of the principle of relief work in the quaint figures stamped upon the surface, pleasing enough, though without any reference to classic dignity or proportion.
There is a good instance of the pleasant use of stamping the pattern upon a clay vessel in this German pitcher from Rothenburg (see p. 87), bought from the workshop of the potter himself, who made the pots of the local clay, fired them, and glazed them himself, and finally was his own salesman—an instructive combination of functions not often found in our own country.
MODERN EGYPTIAN POTTERY.
With wax, modelling can be carried to a greater degree of fineness and sharpness of detail, especially upon a small scale. It is a material, therefore, which lends itself to modelling for bronze and other fine metal castings, to metals and coinage, as well as to small figures, lamps, various vessels and ornaments; and also to large scale, highly finished statues, especially when intended to be cast by the cera perduta or lost wax method, by which the molten metal from the furnace is made to flow into the mould, to take the place of the wax of the model, the wax of course melting and flowing out through the vents contrived for the purpose.