Rockingham Moulded Sherd Pendant

Historical Information

Object: Fully glazed mottled earthenware sherd

Fabric / Body: Thick buff earthenware with heavy moulded relief.

Technique: High-fired lead glaze in rich amber and manganese-brown mottling, with a cobalt-blue band over moulded decoration

Date: c. 1790-1840

Likely Origin: Rockingham-area potteries, Yorkshire/Staffordshire Pattern / Style: Mottled "treacle glaze" / Rockingham-style ware with moulded scrolling

Find Location: Essex Coast, England

Extra Information:

This sherd comes from a piece of Rockingham-style glazed earthenware, a type of richly coloured pottery widely produced in the late Georgian and early Victorian periods. Unlike earlier tortoiseshell wares, these vessels were often fully glazed, inside and out, to create a glossy, durable surface suitable for kitchen and table use. The mottled amber-and-brown glaze, created using manganese and iron oxides, was popularly known as treacle glaze for its thick, sugary appearance. The presence of a cobalt-blue band and moulded scrollwork indicates that the original vessel was more decorative than purely utilitarian. Such pieces were used for teapots, jugs, table dishes, and serving wares in middle-class homes during the early 19th century. These wares were robust, heavily glazed, and widely distributed, which is why fragments appear frequently in historic domestic waste. Smoothed by time and water, this sherd preserves the glossy, richly coloured aesthetic that defined Rockingham and treacle-glazed pottery - a striking survivor from Britain's early industrial ceramic era