A Splendid Soil Hill Puzzle Jug, Halifax, Yorkshire, England, 19th C.

Description

Today we have for sale a wonderful puzzle jug from the Soil Hill Potteries, rare in this perfect condition.

The legend reads “From Mother Earth I claim my birth, I am made a joke for man, now I’m here filled with good cheer, come taste me if you can”.

These jugs were a speciality of the pottery. After the making and construction of these time-consuming pots, which required a skilled pair of hands and was carried out in stages, the puzzle jug here with its five spouts, was immersed in liquid white clay (slip). When this coat of slip had stiffened, the traditional pottery verse would be scratched into the surface, exposing the contrasting red clay underneath, a technique known as sgraffito. When all these processes were finished, the pot would be carefully dried, immersed in a highly-fluxing raw lead and clay glaze then once-fired in a large kiln, placed as a filler among hundreds of other much larger farm, dairy and flower pots. Taking several days to fire and cool, the whole process, including the making from start to finish took several weeks.

A marvellous film financed by the Arts Council of Great Britain was made about Isaac Button working the Soil Hill Pottery on his own and the Herculean tasks involved. It was considered an important record of the life of a country potter with so many generations of Halifax potters before him, and made shortly before he retired in the 1960s.

The last image includes a superb small cream jug, which will soon be for sale, it has served its working life in a local farmhouse. These little jugs were discussed a couple of posts ago, where we explained that just a simple handwritten label as decoration on a small milk jug made it much more desirable.

Date
19th Century.

Dimensions
5.5’’ H x 6.75’’ W O/A approx. (including handle)
Cream jug is 3’’ H x 4’’ O/A (incl. handle)

Condition
In good condition with minor wear commensurate with age and use.

Price
£225 $279-USD

Ref Number: 522021A
Enquiries Welcome