4: Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



flint — an ingredient necessary for the manufacture of earthenware. In the 

 following year Cunningham Greg was awarded the premium, as Thomas 

 G-reg had died in the meantime. The following advertisenieiits relating to 

 this factory are to he found in contemporary numbers of the Belfast Ncvss- 

 Letter. November 7th, 1792 : — " Pottery, Ballymacarrett, near Belfast : Greg, 

 StephensoD, and Ashmore, after various disappointments, have brought the 

 manufacture of cream-coloured or Queen's ware to a degree of perfection 

 much superior to what it was. They have now ready for sale a large 

 assortment of blue-painted, and cream-coloured ware." September 27, 1793 : — 

 " Greg, Stephenson, and Ashmore have for sale a large assortment of cream 

 and other coloured earthenware of the best qualities. They can assure the 

 dealers they will find it to their interest to encourage the manufacture, as 

 the prices are lower than for goods imported." November 29, 1793 : — " Greg, 

 Stephenson, and Ashmore are manufacturing, and have now ready for 

 sale at their warehouse in Ballymacarrett, a great quantity of cream-coloured 

 and painted earthenware. Apothecaries supplied with any quantity of 

 gallipots." As previously stated, Thomas Greg died early in 1796, and 

 probably shortly after this the partnership was dissolved, for in October, 1799, 

 the following advertisement appears : — " The partnership formerly subsisting 

 under the firm of Greg, Stephenson, and Ashmore, has been for some time 

 dissolved. Any demands against the said partnership will be paid by 

 applying to Cunningham Greg, J. M. Stephenson, and John Ashmore." 



Specimens of the ware made at the Downshire Pottery, as this factory 

 was called, probably exist at the present day ; but as no examples have as yet 

 been found bearing marks by which they can be identified, it is almost 

 impossible to say exactly what was produced. 



Through the courtesy of Mr. It. II. Young, of Belfast, I am enabled to 

 make some extracts from an article on this Belfast pottery which he 

 published in the Ulster Journal of Archaeology for April, 1896. In that 

 year a distillery was being erected on the site of the old pottery between 

 Coats' foundry and Duffin's mill adjoining Glentoran and the Lagan. 

 Mr. Young visited the site in March, 1896, and states that many specimens 

 of a coarse porcelain (?) were found, hi the form of broken cups, saucers, 

 bowls, teapots, &c, at the depth of about 4 feet from the surface, and 

 associated with fragments of the seggars. Some pieces of quartz, together 

 with a fine yellow clay, apparently used in the manufacture, were also 

 obtained. Most of the ware was in the biscuit state, but some pieces had 

 been covered with a light buff-coloured glaze. Mr. Young has kindly allowed 

 me to illustrate some of the pieces found, including a teapot-spout with raised 

 ornaments in cream-coloured ware, unglazed, and a teapot-lid and a small 



