Conference excursion

Wedgwood and the Staffordshire potteries: From craft to science

Excursion on Sunday 13 September

Few places left - please book soon to avoid disappointment!

Staffordshire in the east Midlands was a major centre of pottery production immediately before and during the Industrial Revolution. For many generations, numerous small-scale potteries, often on the scale of cottage industries, produced every-day ceramics mostly for the local market. The mid-18^th century saw the rise of one of these factories in particular, driven by Josiah Wedgwood and his ingenious mind. In a quest to improve production processes and to really understand the technology involved he almost single-handedly developed pottery making from a craft to a science.

Our one-day trip will start at 8:30 at the British Musem (North Entrance) and include two key sites. First, we will visit the new and award-winning Wedgwood Museum at Barlaston near Stoke-on-Trent, documenting the Science and Art of his monumental inventions and innovations, and the subsequent development of Wedgwood, from 1759 to 2009. After lunch in the cafeteria / restaurant in the Wedgwood grounds (not included in price; allow c £10 per head, or bring your own lunch) we continue to the Gladstone Pottery Museum nearby, the only surviving Victorian pottery factory showing traditional production methods, including the huge ‘bottle kilns’ so characteristic for the local ceramic production. We aim to be back at the British Museum around 8pm.

Costs: £40 per person, incl. coach trip and entrance fees. Please book before 1 September 2009 by email to th.rehren@ucl.ac.uk (payment in cash during EMAC registration please). Limited places available; early booking recommended.

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Sketch of the Gladstone Pottery Museum

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