272 
RERAMIC STUDIO 
TIN GLAZED WAKE 
WH are so much in the habit of supposing that whatever 
V is to be known of pottery is known to us that it may 
come-|with somewhat of a surprise to many of our readers 
to learn that at least two kinds of ware are not and never 
have been manufactured in Great Britain, says a special 
contributor to the London Pottery Gazette. These are 
known as tin-glazed ; ware and hard-paste china. Of the 
hard paste china we do not propose to say anything at 
present; but a few notes on tin-glazed ware — not so much 
upon' the historic wares of the past, as on the regular every- 
day make of the present — may not be uninteresting. Since 
man first made ware, the question of how to provide the 
porous, rough, unpleasant-feeling surface of the biscuit 
with a smooth, impervious, easily cleaned skin has been 
a matter of study and experiment. The hard, semi- 
vitreous clays, resisting a high temperature, and rich in 
silex, lent themselves readily enough to salt glazing; but 
this is an expensive, difficult and somewhat risky process. 
The suitable clay was not always to be found, and salt, 
especially in those countries where it is taxed, was a by 
no means economical article to use for the purpose. Some- 
one having a softer and less refractory clay to deal with 
hit upon the use of galena; someone else tried red lead, 
and a vast quantity of cooking ware were and still are made 
on these lines. 
The surface of galena and lead-glazed wares is ex- 
cellent — bright, clean, generally uncrazed and easily washed 
— but it leaves a good deal to be desired; it is transparent, 
and the dark red or yellow of the ordinary biscuit takes 
on a still deeper tone. Then, again, they are both very 
readily attacked by acids, some of the lead glaze being 
easily dissolved by lemon juice. This, however ignorant 
the peasant might be, he discovered, and was eager to find 
a ware free from this serious defect, and more pleasant 
to the eye than the rough red ware. Someone, who, can 
never be known, discovered that by fusing metallic tin 
and lead together, oxidizing the mass, adding to the com- 
INSIDE OF FLEUR DE LIS BOWL-HELEN PATTERSON 
