from the first rude and coarse clay vessels for receiving the ashes of the dead, to every conceivable appliance of the table, the toilet, or the drawing room of the living—from the thick and clumsy half-baked urn, to the finest, most costly, and exquisitely beautiful porcelain services and ornaments— the art of the potter has been associated with every race, with every age, and with every occupation of the occupiers of the soil, and has thus been connected with their everyday life, their homes, and their callings. A history of this art, then, must, more than any other, illustrate the history of man, and the progress of his intellectual development, and must form, when properly considered, a key to his civilisation and to his social advancement.

This history, as I have said, has yet to be written, and will, sooner or later, form a work of surpassing interest and value. Introductory to the memoir of one of the greatest potters the world ever saw-JOSIAH WEDGWOOD-I have thought that a slight sketch of the progress of the art in the earliest times in the district which gave him birth, and in which he "lived and moved and had his being," could not fail to be interesting to his countrymen, who enjoy to so great an extent the results of his talents, his skill, and his industry; and I have therefore thrown together the following notes, to give an insight into the state of that art, and to show with what success it has been followed in that one district of our kingdom which has earned for itself the proud title of "the Potteries."

The early fictile history of the important district to which I have referred, and which is universally known as the "Staffordshire Potteries," is naturally, like that of every place or seat of manufacture, involved in mystery. That mystery, however, happily is not altogether impenetrable. By the constant labours of the antiquary, and the discoveries which from time to time he is enabled to make, a light is every now and then thrown on the productions of the early inhabitants of the place; and thus new links in the chain which connects the present with the past are continually

being formed. It is, indeed, an occupation of intense interest to examine these links as they appear, and, by following their ramifications back to the most remote time, take up the thread of history, and connect the early efforts of primeval man, with his rude and clumsy vessels of coarse clay, with those of his successors at the present day, with their wondrous and marvellously fine productions in earthenware and porcelain. It is always interesting to trace out the gradual progress of an art, whatever that art may be; but in the case of pottery that interest is increased an hundredfold. The art of pot making is essentially a homely one; its vessels are for the "people," and for every occupation of the people, and therefore tell more of their manners and customs, their occupations and their inner or home life, than anything else does or can. But few things indeed so well and effectively illustrate the progress of a nation or a race as its pottery; and certainly there is nothing that better shows the gradual development of its civilisation, and of its "mind," than does a chronologically arranged series of its fictile productions; and the following slight sketch of the history of early fictile art in Staffordshire at different periods will be useful in assisting the collector to understand the progress and development of that particular manufacture for which it is so "world-famous."

That pottery has been made in the district from a very early period there can be no doubt, and that in course of time a continuous chain of examples, from the most remote ages down to the present time, might with care and attention be still got together, is equally certain. This collection would be of great advantage to the district, and not only to it but to the country at large and it is much to be hoped that in the new Wedgwood Institute and Museum, at Burslem, this suggestion may be fully carried out.

The four great divisions into which the history of the Ceramic Art of this country is to be divided (leaving out the modern manufactures) are, of course, those of the Celtic or ancient British, the Romano-British, the Anglo-Saxon, and

the Medieval periods. To each of these periods a separate volume, to do the subject even a shadow of justice, ought to be devoted. My present purpose, however, is only, as I have stated, to glance at their principal characteristics, and to illustrate them, as far as may be, by Staffordshire examples. In the CELTIC, or ancient British, period, the pottery consists mainly of cinerary or sepulchral urns, drinkingcups, food-vessels, and incense-cups. These were un

doubtedly made on the spot, or near the spot, where found. They were, no doubt, the handiwork of the females of the tribe, and occasionally exhibit no little elegance of form and no small degree of ornamentation. They are formed of the coarse common clay of the place where made, occasionally mixed with small pebbles and gravel. They are entirely wrought by hand, without the assistance of the wheel, and are, the larger vessels especially, extremely thick. From their imperfect firing, the vessels of this period are usually called "sun-baked," or "sun-dried." This, however, is a grave error, as any one who will take the trouble to examine an example will easily perceive. If the vessels were "sunbaked" only, their burial in the earth-in the barrows wherein they were deposited, and where they have remained for a couple of thousands of years-would soon soften them, and they would, ages ago, have returned to their old consistency. As it is, they bear evidence of the action of fire, and are indeed sometimes sufficiently burned for the clay to have attained a red colour. They are mostly of an earthybrown colour outside, and almost black in fracture; and many of the cinerary urns bear internal evidence of having been filled by the burnt bones and ashes of the deceased, while those ashes were of a glowing and intense heat.

The Cinerary Urns-i.e. such urns as have contained, either inverted or otherwise, the burnt bones and ashes of the deceased-of Staffordshire, like those of Derbyshire, vary considerably in form from those of many other districts. Their principal characteristic is a broad or deep overlapping border or rim. They vary in size from nine or ten up to

sixteen or eighteen inches in height; and their ornamentation, always produced by indenting twisted thongs into the pliant clay, or by simple incision, is frequently very elaborate. This ornamentation usually consists of diagonal lines, or of "herring-bone" or zigzag lines, arranged in different ways, and producing a remarkably good effect. Of these interesting vessels some excellent examples have been found in Staffordshire, and these were, without doubt, made on the spot. They are, therefore, the very earliest examples which

can be produced of Staffordshire pottery, and date back to the time when that district was inhabited by the Cornavii. Of the form of Staffordshire pottery of this early period the best idea will be gleaned from the accompanying engravings. The first is a remarkably fine cinerary urn, discovered in

a barrow, along with other pottery to be hereafter noticed, at Trentham. It is richly ornamented in the usual manner, with lines formed by indented twisted thongs, and is of remarkably good form. It is in the possession of my friend, Dr. J. Barnard Davis, F.S.A. The next example is from

Stone, where it was discovered some years ago. It is, as will be seen, a fine urn, and is elaborately ornamented with incised lines. Like the Trentham urn, this one was filled with burnt bones when found. The third one was dis

covered, in fragments, by Mr. Redfern, the historian of Uttoxeter, at Toot Hill, near that town. It is ornamented with indented twisted thongs in the usual manner.

At Yoxall, some years ago, it is recorded about forty cinerary urns were discovered, but were, unfortunately, nearly all wantonly destroyed. They appear to have been of the usual form, with somewhat elaborate

zigzag ornaments. An urn, with the upper rim punctured