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Ipswich ware is a type of
Ipswich ware is a type of Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
pottery
Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and po ...
produced in Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
between the eighth and ninth centuries AD. Manufactured in the Ipswich
Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...
, Suffolk
Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include L ...
area, it is considered to be the first wheel-turned and mass-produced pottery in Britain. The pottery is a simple, hard grey ware with little or no decoration. Most vessel types include jars, cooking pots and decorated pitchers. Ipswich ware was distributed primarily in eastern Britain, but was also traded in smaller numbers from Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
north to York
York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...
and west to Oxfordshire.
Description
Ipswich ware is a plain, hard, sandy grey ware made in both a smooth and gritty fabric, and is dark grey in colour. Ipswich ware was produced in a small variety of forms, primarily jars with rounded bodies and upright rims, hanging vessels, cooking pots and more infrequently, large bottles and decorated pitchers. The bases of jars were typically very thick and upper jar bodies were often enhanced with grooved bands. The pottery was made on a slow-wheel (turntable) and fired in a kiln. Ipswich ware has similar characteristics to Frisian pottery, which was imported to Britain during the early Anglo-Saxon era. Frisian pottery is grey in colour, also round bodied and thick-walled with upright rims, and made on a turntable.History
Ipswich ware is the first wheel-turned and mass-produced pottery in Britain. Manufactured from the early eighth to the ninth centuries AD, it was distributed widely in East Anglia and easternCambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...
. It was traded less frequently from Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
, north to York
York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...
, and west to Oxfordshire, typically along busy traveling routes. From the sixth to the eighth centuries AD in Britain, non-imported pottery was handmade and fired in bonfires. In Ipswich, at the beginning the eighth century, local craftsmen changed the way they manufactured pottery and started finishing their wares on a slow-wheel and fired the finished products in kiln
A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects made from clay int ...
s.
Three pottery kilns from the Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
era have been discovered and excavated in Ipswich. Two kilns were found in the Cox Lane area and one has been identified in the Buttermarket area. Findings from the kiln excavations suggest that Ipswich ware was first manufactured around 720 AD. It was also determined that Ipswich pottery was made by first coiling
A coiling or coil is a curve, helix, or spiral used for storing rope or cable in compact and reliable yet easily attainable form. They are often discussed with knots.
Mountaineer's coil
The mountaineer's coil (also alpine coil, climber's co ...
the raw material and then finishing objects on a slow-wheel and firing in a kiln. The Buttermilk kiln was in production from 800 to 850 AD. After the introduction of Ipswich ware, hand-made pottery forms were no longer produced in Britain.
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See also
* Sandy ware * Shelly ware * Thetford ware * List of English medieval potteryReferences
{{Pottery Ceramics of medieval England English pottery