Libro

The British Museum collection of English delftware, although not the largest, is one of the most interesting. It has been the writer's intention to make it better known and to show how it can be used to illuminate the political, social and technological history of the nation. In this endeavour I have been greatly assisted from the outset by Stephen McManus, a collector and volunteer who has been an invaluable support in my research, and who has also compiled the index. Jonathan Horne provided immense encouragement and shared his deep knowledge of delftware with me all through the project. Margaret Macfarlane and Michael Archer have also generously given their time to discuss many of the problem pieces in the collection.
The Ceramica-Stiftung in Basel have given a substantial grant towards the production costs of this book, for which I am immensely grateful.
I should like to thank Sir Harry Djanogly for his hospitality, encouragement and generosity in supporting the project.
My colleagues both at home and abroad have been immensely supportive and I should like to thank Jessie McNab, formerly of the Metropolitan Museum, New York, Jan Daniël van Dam of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Pat Halfpenny and Lesley Grigsby, Winterthur Museum, Delaware, Stella Beddoe, Brighton Museum and Art Gallery, Julia Poole, Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, Neil Hyman, Hampshire Museums Service, Robin Emmerson, National Museums Liverpool, Hazel Forsyth, Museum of London, Alison Copeland, Manchester Art Gallery, Timothy Wilson and Dinah Reynolds, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford and Miranda Goodby, Potteries Museum, Stoke-on-Trent, for allowing access to their collections, and spending long hours in conversation with me about delftware.
In the British Museum I owe a debt of gratitude to Jessica Harrison-Hall, Department of Asia, Barrie Cook and Philip Attwood, Coins and Medals, Jonathan Williams, Jill Cook, Beverley Nenk and Dora Thornton, James Peters and his team, Prehistory and Europe, Joanna Bowring, Head of Public Libraries, Antony Griffiths, Martin Royalton-Kisch and Sheila O'Connell, Prints and Drawings and to Ivor Kerslake and John Williams, Photography and Imaging.
Much information has been discovered about a whole range of pieces and I wish to acknowledge help from all those who have been kind enough to respond to my enquiries and give me the benefit of their expertise, including Garry Atkins, Jane Baxter, Jane Bradley, Local Studies Librarian, Bristol Reference Library, Anthony du Boulay, Maisie Brown, Marjorie Caygill, Clive Cheesman, Mark Dennis, archivist, Freemason's Hall, Penny Fussell, archivist, the Worshipful Company of Drapers, John Graves, National Maritime Museum, Antoinette Hallé, Musée National de Céramique, Sèvres, Trevor Hines, Clerk, the Worshipful Company of Gardeners, Bob Houghton, Adrian James, Librarian, Society of Antiquaries of London, Suzanne Lambooy, Aronson Antiquairs, Camille Leprince, Jennifer Marin, Jewish Museum, London, Eve McClure, Norfolk Heritage Centre, John Mallet, Margaret McGregor, Bristol Record Office, Susan North, Victoria and Albert Museum, Jean Rosen, Sheila Vainker, Ashmolean Museum and Francesca Vanke, Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery. Special thanks are due also to Louise Phelps and Rodney Woolley, Christie's.
Julia Barton, Conservation and Scientific Research, has performed miracles in restoring and cleaning a large number of pots, Maickel van Bellegem has cleaned metal mounts and assisted in their study, Caroline Cartwright has examined with me the plate with Masonic arms and Janet Ambers X-rayed the bust of Charles I. Photographs for the book have been taken by Saul Peckham of the British Museum Department of Photography and Imaging, whose skill and patience have been, as always, remarkable.
Without the encouragement of Teresa Francis of British Museum Press this book would not have been written, and I owe her much. Sarah Derry, my editor, to whom I am deeply grateful, has patiently guided the book to press.

Delftware has been made in England since the sixteenth century, when floor tiles and drug pots were produced in Aldgate, London by immigrant potters from the Low Countries. Once called 'galleyware', this type of pottery came to be known as delftware after the Dutch town of Delft which was renowned for its manufacture. This stunning book introduces a magnificent selection of English and Irish delftware drawn from the British Museum's important collection.
In the early seventeenth century factories making dishes and other wares were set up in London close to the River Thames, their products initially influenced by Italian maiolica and subsequently by Chinese porcelain. Manufacture spread from London to Bristol, Liverpool and Dublin. Delftware was made for many domestic uses: for eating and drinking, for pharmaceutical and hygienic purposes, and not infrequently for display. It was usually decorated by hand with painted inscriptions, coats-of-arms or splendid scenes - mainly biblical, allegorical or pastoral - or else in imitation Chinese style. Delftware continued to be made in centres all over the British Isles and in Ireland until the early nineteenth century, enjoying almost 300 years of continuous production.
The British Museum collection of delftware is one of the finest in the world. It is especially notable for the number of pieces bearing dates and for those which document historical personages and events. This beautifully illustrated book features more than 185 items from this extensive collection and includes pieces which have never before been published in colour.
Aileen Dawson FSA is a curator at the British Museum. Her publications include The Art of Worcester Porcelain, French Porcelain: A Catalogue of the British Museum Collection and Masterpieces of Wedgwood.
With 290 illustrations