Antique Wedgwood Jasperware “Augur’s Bowl" Large

Description

For your consideration...a rather large “Augurs Bowl”

An augur was a priest and official in the classical Roman world. Who’s … more For your consideration...a rather large “Augurs Bowl”

An augur was a priest and official in the classical Roman world. Who’s main role was the practice of augury: Interpreting the will of the gods by studying the flight of birds – whether they were flying in groups or alone, what noises they made as they flew, direction of flight, and what kind of birds they were. Also many other “signs of portend “ This was known as "taking the auspices". Bowls were used to burn prayers and offerings to the gods.

A beautiful Wedgwood Blue Jasper ware*Imperial shape bowl.

It is decorated in the "Classical" style.

Measures 9” at the lip of the rim, about 10” wide at the widest part, and stands 6.25" tall.

It is in excellent condition. No damage, no wear.

* What is Jasperware?
Named after the mineral jasper for marketing reasons, the exact Wedgwood formula remains confidential, but analyses indicate that barium sulphate is a key ingredient. Wedgwood had introduced a different type of stoneware called black basalt a decade earlier. He had been researching a white stoneware for some time, creating a body called "waxen white jasper" by 1773-74. This tended to fail in firing and was not as attractive as the final jasperware, and little was sold.

Jasperware's composition varies but according to one 19th-century analysis it was approximately: 57% barium sulphate, 29% ball clay, 10% flint, 4% barium carbonate. Barium sulphate ("cawk" or "heavy-spar") was a fluxing agent and obtainable as a by-product of lead mining in nearby Derbyshire.

The fired body is naturally white but usually stained with metallic oxide colours; its most common shade is pale blue, but dark blue, lilac, sage green (described as "sea-green" by Wedgwood), black, and yellow are also used, with sage green due to chromium oxide, blue to cobalt oxide, and lilac to manganese oxide, with yellow, probably coming from a salt of antimony, and black from iron oxide. Other colours sometimes appear, including white used as the main body colour, with applied reliefs in one of the other colours. The yellow is rare. A few pieces, mostly the larger ones like vases, use several colours together,and some pieces mix jasperware and other types together.

The earliest jasper was stained throughout, which is known as "solid," but before long most items were coloured only on the surface; these are known as "dipped" or "dip". Dipping was first used in 1777, Wedgwood writing that "the Cobalt @ 36s. per lb, which is too dear to mix with the clay of the whole grounds". By 1829 production in jasper had virtually ceased, but in 1844 production resumed making dipped wares. Solid jasper was not manufactured again until 1860.Early dark blue was often made by dipping a body made from the solid light blue. In the best early pieces, the relief work was gone over, including some undercutting, by lapidaries
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