GU/ton College Scientific Society. 31 



call it (as they did the clay above) the white slip ; 3d, the red 

 slip, made of a dirty reddish clay, which gives the ware a black 

 colour. None of these clay slips must have any gravel or sand 

 in them. 



Upon this account, before it be brought to the wheel they pre- 

 pare the clay by steeping it in water in a square pit, till it be of 

 a due consistence ; then they bring it to their heating-hoard, 

 where with a long spatula they beat it till it be well mixed ; then 

 being first made into large squarish rolls, it is brought to the 

 loaging -hoard, where it is slit into flat thin pieces with a wire, 

 and the least stones or gravel taken out of it. 



This being done, they wage it, i.e., knead or mould it like bread, 

 and make it into round balls proportionately to their work, when 

 it is brought to the wheel and formed according to the judgment 

 of the workman. After the potter has wrought the clay into 

 hollow or flat ware, he sets it abroad to dry in fair weather, but 

 by the fire in wet, turning it as seems tit. This operation is 

 called whari7ig. When they are dry they sfouk them, i.e., 

 put ears and handles to such vessels as require them. These 

 also being dry, they slij) or paiiit with their several sorts of slip 

 according to the design ; when the first slip is dry, laying on 

 the next at leisure, the orange slip making the ground, and the 

 white and red the paint. 



These two colours they break with a wire-brush much after the 

 manner that paper is marbled, and then cloud them with a pencil 

 when tolerably dry. After the vessels are painted they lead them 

 with that sort of lead ore they call smithum, which is the 

 smallest ore of all, beaten into dust, finely sifted, and strewed upon 

 them ; by this process they impart a gloss but not the colour. 



The colours are chiefly given by a variety of slips, except the 

 motley colour, which is produced by blending the lead with 

 manganese, by the workmen called magnus. But when they 

 intend to show the utmost of their skill in giving their wares 

 a finer gloss than ordinary, they lead them with lead calcined to 

 a powder, which they also sift fine, and strew upon them as before. 

 This not only imparts a greater gloss, but goes much further 

 in their work than lead ore. Afterwards they are carried to an 

 oven above eight feet high and six feet wide, of a round copped 

 form, where they are placed one upon another from top to bottom ; 

 if they are ordinary wares, they are exposed to the naked fire 

 without being leaded. All the flat ware is exposed to the naked 

 fire, having only parting-shards, i.e., thin bits of old pots placed 

 between them to keep them from sticking together. But if they 

 be leaded hollow wares, they are not exposed to the naked fire, 



