JOSIAH WEDGWOOD, HIS PYROMETER, AND MEASURING HEAT

Who knew this subject could be so interesting?  There is ALWAYS something fascinating to be learned about Josiah Wedgwood, FRS, and his brilliant career and life and work.  Go here to learn a bit about his invention of the pyrometer and later developments in the field of measuring high degrees of heat, courtesy of Chemistry World.  Another of those Wedgwood subjects that is a bit "out there" but another interesting segment of the total Wedgwood story.  Enjoy!

ANOTHER REVIEW OF THE POTTER'S HAND BY A.N. WILSON

If interested readers will scroll down to my 9/1 post about this book, one will see my initial interest in the book, my subsequent slightly negative reaction to it, and several reviews by other people.  The Wedgwood Society of New South Wales publishes a newsletter and with permission of the reviewer and the Editor, I am posting her review in the latest issue of The Medallion, the Society's newsletter.   Dianne Parrey points out that those of us who know the factual stories of Josiah, the factory, his associates and the family will likely be more critical of this book.  Perhaps someone without that Wedgwood background will enjoy the book because of viewing the story through different eyes. Appreciation to our Australian friends for allowing us to publish this review, and particular thanks to Dianne.

The Potter’s Hand
Reviewed by Dianne Parrey

On the last page of A.N. Wilson’s book “The Potter’s Hand” there is a note on the author explaining how he is a biographer and a novelist of renown having even been “longlisted for the Man Booker Prize”.  (Wilson: p. 506) I have to admit that I am truly sorry Wilson did not stick to biography or write a truly original novel because the mix that he has created is quite disturbing.  There are some beautiful descriptions in the story that clearly illustrate Wilson’s capabilities as a writer, for example I found “[t]he violent orange of the setting sun caught the frozen puddles in the fields and was reflected with a series of dazzling colour splashes” (Wilson: p.96) a lovely image. Or when Wilson describes Stubbs' journey up the canal noting “the billowing white and charcoal clouds promised rain again as they brooded in the pale blue sky”. (Wilson: p. 297)  However, the story is full of so many historical inaccuracies, that for a student of Wedgwood or eighteenth century history the book becomes quite frustrating.

As a love story, a story of unhappiness and ambition, and desire, there is certainly some merit but the book is too melancholy and aims to shock too much such as the death of the guard after Wilson describes how the Russian Empress decides to take sexual advantage of him. (Wilson: p. 163)  I also found Wilson’s dislike of his characters Sally and Jos Wedgwood and the children and his, at times, offensive descriptions off putting. Characters they are because they bear little resemblance to the people that can be gleaned from Josiah’s own letters.

If I had written this review based on the first five chapters of the book my comment would have been ‘don’t bother’. However, I have to say that as I read the book and consciously tried to treat the book as simply a work of fiction I did briefly enjoy some chapters but these sections were very few and tended o be the chapters that dealt with the purely created characters such as the scene of Caleb and Meribah at the pond. (Wilson: pp. 458–59)

There is a wealth of reference to the great men of the industrial and political revolutions. However, unfortunately in many cases the facts are wrong.  One of the things I find most desirable about historical fiction is the accuracy of the facts—the ability to weave a fiction story in and out of the reality. Wilson fails to do this.  I think it is clear by the beginning of Part Two that Wilson should have written a book on the American Revolution, a separate one on Wedgwood and a separate love story for his created characters.

I desperately wanted to know Stubbs and Dr. Darwin better and had hoped that someone whose own personal history had been influenced by the factory (his father having worked for the company) might have been able to bring these characters to life. In the end there were so many inaccuracies that I was glad when I had finished the book.  I believe anyone who has a strong attachment to history, especially Wedgwood history, should not read this book or should do so warily because even Wilson admits in his afterword that he played with the facts changing the dates, including the date the Frog Service was finished, to fit in with his storyline.  (Wilson: p. 504) He created letters and I believe put inappropriate words into the mouths of people who would never have said some of the things he has them saying. Wilson has also created some very disturbing references to various characters and the descriptions of Mary Ann’s suffering are very confronting (Wilson: p. 426). Some readers will find some of the sexual references, (Wilson: pp. 55 and 163) the shallowness of the characters and the violence in the Cherokee massacre very disturbing (Wilson: p. 167).

I believe it is essential to approach this book in the clear knowledge that this is very much a piece of fiction with some very predictable story lines spiced with incidents meant to shock; at times filtered with some truly disturbing scenes, and yet written by an author who, at times, is almost poetic in his descriptions. For someone who knows nothing about Wedgwood the undesirable impact would be less.

What reading this book has done for me though is to make me want to start rereading the volumes of Wedgwood’s letters in the hope of wiping out the memory of some of the depictions of Wedgwood in Wilson’s book that I found really unpleasant.

Wedgwood Christmas Cartoon from the Past

We all know how the British love to commemorate things...and Jasper plaques have been awarded to many people, teams and institutions over a long span of years...this is a favorite cartoon of ours from the Wedgwood Review, an employee publication of the past.  Enjoy and happiest of holidays from us here at Alexis Antiques!

Click the pic for a larger version to read the caption.

WEDGWOOD FROG SERVICE RETROSPECTIVE IN RUSSIA

For our Russian collectors, or those traveling to Russia between now and March 31, an exciting exhibit is open in St. Petersburg, home of The Hermitage.  Check it out here but do not blame us for the poor quality of the grammar and spelling!  It was likely written by someone whose native language is not English, which of course wouldn't be surprising in Russia!  If anyone sees the exhibit, I'd love to have comments on it here or via email!

Alexis Antiques on Facebook - Finally

We have finally published a Facebook page for Alexis Antiques & Alexis Antiques Annex!  Just type in Alexis Antiques and you'll find us!  We'll be posting new items in stock, news, views and maybe video tapes so check us out!  But don't forget our blog!

London Evening News Features Portland Vase restored with Wedgwood's help

Most of us Wedgwoodians know the story of the Portland Vase, if one doesn't there are PLENTY of books on the subject both informative and beautiful.  Our good friend Lord Anthony Pulford of Glencoe, Scotland recently gifted me with a wonderful book published in 1951 entitled "London is Stranger Than Fiction".  This is a book of the cartoons and stories written by Peter Jackson which appeared in The London Evening News every Wednesday for several years.  The stories are interesting historical facts, funny happenings and trivia questions - such as "Where in London can you see a mosaic of Greta Garbo?"  We spotted one very fun fact that we don't think we knew before about the Portland Vase.  See the panel below (Click the picture for a larger version so you can read it.) from the issue of 9 March 1949.  And from Lord Pulford comes this tidbit that I didn't know about, "Oddly enough, when the latest restoration of the Portland Vase was carried out, they found an envelope in the glass case containing the bits that the original restorer couldn't find a place for."  That's pretty scary!  Oh and by the way Greta may be seen on the floor of the entrance to the National Gallery.  For all London lovers, this book would be a treasure, look for it at your favorite used book seller, antiques shop or book fair! 

WEDGWOOD DOES THANKSGIVING

Being a descendant of two Mayflower passengers, Thanksgiving is always an important day at our house.  I began hearing from friends weeks ago that Christmas items were already in the stores.  Halloween of course gets lots of "press", and lots of floor space in the retail stores.  Have you ever thought about the fact that retail-wize we go straight from Halloween to Christmas?  Unless Christmas came first to begin with?  We at Alexis Antiques never forget Thanksgiving and hope you won't either.  If you click this post title you will see a spectacular Pearlware plate which would be smashing as a decoration for the home this time of year, OR as a serving piece for some of your Thanksgiving victuals.  More wonderful Thanksgiving merchandise will appear if one CLICKS HERE, and HERE is a nice print from a 1917 issue of Ladies Home Journal magazine which is colorful and a very traditional look at our vision of that first Thanksgiving.  Let us know if we can help you with any aspect of your browsing or purchasing process.  Many of our items are by Wedgwood, but you will see some by others - and there is even a beer ad to be found with a great Mayflower theme!  Remember water was bad in those days, beer was healthier and the pilgrims took LOTS of it on their journey so it's appropriate for the beer barons to use beer as a theme for advertising at this time of year!

May your blessings be many and your thanks be for much good in your lives.

LORD WEDGWOOD MOVING AROUND THE WORLD AT LIGHTENING SPEED

At the risk of turning our Wedgwood blog into a travelogue for His Lordship, I've discovered this morning that he is now in one of our favorite cities, Birmingham, Alabama.  He certainly has been moving around quickly!  After this visit to the south, perhaps he can go home and rest for awhile.  He looks great in the photo in this article, seemingly his travels aren't doing him in too much!  HERE is the link to today's article.  And below right off the press from our

very good friend, Adele Barnett of the Wedgwood Society of Washington, DC, comes the following news flash and photo - "Bromberg's, on behalf of the Lord Wedgwood Charity, presented the Birmingham Museum of Art with one of the 5 Lord Wedgwood busts."  [The BMA is home to the Beeson and Buten collections of Wedgwood, the largest repository of Wedgwood in this hemisphere.  Bromberg's is a long-standing supporter of Wedgwood & Sons, its products and its people, including work for the Lord Wedgwood Charity.  lvc]  THANK YOU to Adele for furnishing us with this great photo and the news of Bromberg's donation to the BMA!

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS LORD WEDGWOOD TODAY?

Our friend Lord Wedgwood's travels can be so very interesting, we love "following" him around the world.  This week he is still in Sydney, Australia, where he has been for awhile, on an extended trip promoting the company's Wedgwood and Bentley line of prestige wares.  We are pleased to bring you a YOUTube interview with RescuTV at the Langholm Hotel in Sydney.  Here you can see the always colorful Lord Wedgwood talking about gifting Wedgwood and about collecting it too.  He describes the story of how so many Wedgwood collectors, yours truly included, first came down with the Wedgwood disease, finding just one piece of Wedgwood, usually a small blue jasper piece, and falling in love.  Sometimes these encounters last the rest of a lifetime, and as one wanders the world of Wedgwood collecting, one will discover MANY of these stories.  It is interesting that he uses that example because I have heard several collectors say it to him, as have I.  Enjoy a bit over 6 minutes listening to Lord Wedgwood's lovely lilting British accent as he talks about his favorite subject and his interviewer's equally lovely Aussie accent!  

And please don't forget our website www.alexisantiques.com for your upcoming Christmas shopping!  We'll be shipping right up to the very last day possible to get your gift selections to your lucky recipients. With over 2,000 line items of Wedgwood, antiques, and Wedgwood-related items, we're sure to have something for everyone on your shopping list...and if all else fails, a gift-certificate comes to mind!

 We have some of these Nativity figures by Coalport in stock, item # wwx602.

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS LORD WEDGWOOD?

G'Day all!  We love following the far-flung travels of our friend and Wedgwood ambassador, Piers, Lord Wedgwood of Barlaston.  Click here to see where he is going to be in November, part of his extensive trip Down Under.  Our Aussie friends are enjoying the pleasure of his company we understand!