Punch Bowl thumbnail 1
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Punch Bowl

ca. 1779 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Object Type
The bowl was made for mixing hot punch, for which creamware, being hygenic and heat-resistant, was very suitable. It was probably given as a present at a wedding. Punch was first made in Western Europe during the 17th century, and it became the favourite drink for parties and assemblies in the following one. Its name, deriving from the Persian or Hindu word for 'five', refers to its five ingredients: spirits (originally Arrack from Goa or Batavia), sugar, lemon or lime, nutmeg and other spices, and water. New recipes including sweet Malaga wine, rum and brandy were introduced in the 18th century, when variants, such as those combining gin or brandy with hot water and sugar, were also drunk.

Trading
Export markets were always important for the Staffordshire potter Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795), and by the 1780s they accounted for about 80 per cent of his production. He appointed a Dutch agent as early as 1763, and The Netherlands became one of his strongest overseas markets. Exports included large quantities of creamware. These were sometimes printed with designs that had passed out of fashion in Britain, as with the Rococo decoration on this bowl. Wedgwood also made portrait medallions and library busts of Dutch statesman specifically for the Dutch market.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Creamware (Queen's Ware), with transfer-printed decoration and enamelled inscription
Brief description
Punch bowl, Wedgwood, ca.1779
Physical description
PUNCH BOWL with transfer-printed decoration
Dimensions
  • Height: 11.43cm
  • Width: 26.67cm
Marks and inscriptions
Inscribed 'JURRY PARKER EN ELISABETH PARKER EGTE LUYDEN BINNEN DE STAD ROTTERDAM 1779'
Gallery label
(27/03/2003)
British Galleries:
Josiah Wedgwood sold a wide range of his wares to the Dutch who particularly liked his Queen's Ware. He also supplied them with portrait medallions of the Dutch royal family and other famous national figures. The inscription on this bowl, which celebrates the marriage of a Rotterdam couple, was added in The Netherlands.
(23/05/2008)
Punch-bowl
Made at the factory of Josiah Wedgwood, Etruria, Staffordshire, about 1775
Lead-glazed earthenware, transfer-printed in black and enamelled

C.391-1923 Given by Mr Sidney Hand

The bowl was transfer-printed in England and exported to Holland, where the inscription dated 1779 was added. The rococo ornament round the inscription is typical of export wares, which often featured styles on the wane in England. As such it is a good illustration of Wedgwood abandoning the neo-classical styles with which he is usually associated and making his products suit particular markets.
Credit line
Given by Mr Sidney Hand
Object history
Made at Josiah Wedgwood's factory, Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire; printed in Liverpool by Guy Green (died 1799)
Summary
Object Type
The bowl was made for mixing hot punch, for which creamware, being hygenic and heat-resistant, was very suitable. It was probably given as a present at a wedding. Punch was first made in Western Europe during the 17th century, and it became the favourite drink for parties and assemblies in the following one. Its name, deriving from the Persian or Hindu word for 'five', refers to its five ingredients: spirits (originally Arrack from Goa or Batavia), sugar, lemon or lime, nutmeg and other spices, and water. New recipes including sweet Malaga wine, rum and brandy were introduced in the 18th century, when variants, such as those combining gin or brandy with hot water and sugar, were also drunk.

Trading
Export markets were always important for the Staffordshire potter Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795), and by the 1780s they accounted for about 80 per cent of his production. He appointed a Dutch agent as early as 1763, and The Netherlands became one of his strongest overseas markets. Exports included large quantities of creamware. These were sometimes printed with designs that had passed out of fashion in Britain, as with the Rococo decoration on this bowl. Wedgwood also made portrait medallions and library busts of Dutch statesman specifically for the Dutch market.
Collection
Accession number
C.391-1923

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Record createdMarch 27, 2003
Record URL
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