The Eagles Have Landed

I've been working with a group of students from Burnside College in Wallsend to create a piece of sculpture relating to trade throughout the Roman Empire.  It will consist of an amphora pouring a cascade of ceramic coins onto a map of the Roman World and will form part of "The Eagles Have Landed" exhibition at Tullie House, Carlisle.  The coins will stream out across the map in a network of trade routes.

We have made a two metre diameter map of the Roman World entirely composed of miniature terracotta thumb pots giving it the appearance of broken pots, representing the excavated remains of ancient Rome.

Each area and country will be labelled with a copper nameplate 

and the whole sculpture will be placed on a raised plinth.

We have made many hundreds of large ceramic coins and ........ it's getting pretty crowded in my workshop!

Visit my website at www.pottedhistory.co.uk

Wonderful Flint Tools

Taking a piece of soft plastic clay in my hand and forming it into a pot I understand, but striking a piece of flint with a piece of deer antler and controlling the way the the fracture passes through the stone just seems magical.  I'm sure that if I put as many hours into hitting bits of stone as I have into shaping clay I would get the hang of it but with people as talented as John Lord around I think I'll stick to the mud, if you'll pardon the pun.  I'm busy upgrading my handling collections for the coming year so I ordered a few bits and pieces for John's site www.flintknapping.co.uk  and yesterday they arrived.

A flaked Neolithic Axe Head, two Tang & Barb Arrow Heads and possibly my favourite a Beaker Dagger.  I'm just really awed by the beauty of them.  I'm going to be hafting them and putting them together with appropriate pots to display when I'm doing my demos. 

Visit my website at www.pottedhistory.co.uk

From Ancient Egypt to English Country Slipware

I think I've said before that my work can be quite wide and varied, well here's an example:  Over the past few days I've been working on sets of Egyptian Canopic Jars and some English Slipware.

Canopic Jar Set

Slipware Puzzle Jug

In this jar there is good liquor

Fit for either clerk or vicar

But to drink and not to spill

Will try the utmost of your skill 

A Slipware Harvest Jug

Good luck to the hoof and the horn

Good luck to the flock and fleece

Good luck to the growers of corn

With blessings of plenty and peace

Getting a bit nautical with this Mermaid Jug

Posset

A Health to King Charles

Visit my website at www.pottedhistory.co.uk