Green glazed Mudlarked Pottery Ring

Historical Information

Type: Green-Glazed Domestic Pottery
Fabric: White-Firing Earthenware
Date: 18th–19th Century
Find Location: Essex, UK
Extra Information:
This sherd comes from a vessel made of fine white-firing earthenware coated with a translucent green glaze. White-bodied clays were often preferred by potteries from the 18th century onwards, as they provided a cleaner, brighter background for coloured glazes. The green tone was usually achieved by adding copper oxides to a lead-based glaze, producing a vivid and glassy finish.

Green-glazed pottery has roots in medieval England, where copper glazes were applied to coarse utilitarian wares. By the 1700s–1800s, potters refined the process to suit finer clays. Such wares were commonly used for household tableware and storage vessels, bridging the gap between plain utilitarian pottery and more decorative ceramics. This fragment represents the continuation of green-glazed traditions into the modern period, valued for both practical use and aesthetic appeal.