Dear all,
I am currently conducting some work on ceramics that have been marked by
the manufacturer with the name and/or crest of an individual or
institution who ordered the ceramics. My work relates to the University
of Cambridge and we have recovered material associated with a number of
colleges from several sites that indicate that the pottery was deposited
some distance from the actual college. It appears that some college
vessels may have passed through several stages between primary use and
ultimate deposition.
The marking of ceramics with the name etc. of an individual/institution
is a relatively widespread 18th-20th century practice and I am looking
for parallels for discovering marked ceramics some distance for the
point of usage.
The only North American example I am aware of relates to the Earl of
Dunmore, the last crown governor of Virginia (1771–75). Fragments from
his service of armorial porcelain have been found at various sites in
Williamsburg, possibly because they were carried off when the Governor's
Palace was ransacked or sold when Dunsmore’s surviving personal effects
were auctioned off. My references for this date to the 1960’s so I would
be interested in anything more recent on this.
Thanks for any pointers.
Craig Cessford