Object Type
F. Shelley copied the ceramic pots in these watercolours as part of student training for examination. Each watercolour is blind stamped with the letters 'ESK' which means 'Examined South Kensington'. Most of the backgrounds in the watercolours are finished in a marbled effect showing that they are presentation works for the examiners.

Subjects Depicted
Student training involved copying objects in the Museum, such as the pots in these watercolours. The objects copied are from the main countries and periods thought, by 19th-century authorities, to have produced good design. None of the pots depicted are 19th-century ones indicating that in this instance training did not include looking at recent or contemporary work. Part of the decoration on most of the pots is unfinished but the different types of decoration are represented in enough detail to enable immediate identification. All the objects in the drawing can be identified in the Museum's collections today.

Places
The student who painted these watercolours was probably a student at the School of Design. This establishment was transferred to South Kensington where it remained, until recently, adjacent to the Museum buildings. It was referred to as the Art School or Art Training School and survives today as the Royal College of Art.