Stoneware Ceramics

Stoneware  Ceramics

A Beginners Guide                          

Stoneware

Stoneware is a very hard ceramic body.It is fired to around 1300°C and is partially vitrified which makes it almost totally impervious to liquids. Stoneware is made from a mixture of clays and fusible stone. It is very similar to porcelain in structure, but is made from different raw materials and it is rarely more than faintly translucent.

Stoneware  Ceramics

It can have a white finish but often is a buff or grey color.

Stoneware does not need to be glazed but for some uses - such as for (drainpipes and for decorative purposes - it is glazed with either salt or lead. Salt leaves a pitted appearance on the surface of items, rather like an orange.

Salt is literally thrown into the kiln during the firing process and as it melts, the sodium in the salt combines with chemicals within the clay body to form a thin glaze on the surface.

Stoneware was used by potters in ancient civilizations but the Chinese, from the 4th and 5th centuries onward, became adept at modelling utility wares, elegant vases and sculptures from the material as well as developing ever more beautiful glazes and decoration.

Stoneware  Ceramics

Within Europe, from the 12th century onward, Germany developed stoneware production and Cologne became a famous centre for grey and blue tinged wares. In the 16th and 17th centuries, much stoneware was imported into England and eventually John Dwight established his own factory in Fulham. Dwight also experimented in making porcelain.

Stoneware  Ceramics

 The London stoneware tradition was continued by potters such as Doulton and Co. who, from 1815 - 1956, used the ceramic for an extensive range of domestic and ornamental wares as well as for chemical and industrial use.

In the early-18th century, Staffordshire potters discovered how to make white salt glazed stoneware and this was used for tableware and figures for some decades, but was eventually superseded by cream earthenware.



Stoneware is used today by a variety of manufacturers. Wedgwood introduced various ornamental ranges made from stoneware in the 1760s including Black Basalt, Jasper Ware and Cane wares. The famous potter, Bernard Leach, opened a studio in 1920 and his Oriental and Medieval English designs used a stoneware body which are now highly sought-after.

Stoneware  Ceramics

Highland Stoneware formed in 1974 in the north  west Scottish  Highlands has built an international reputation for quality and innovation. The company makes all its own clay, glazes and decorating colors and fires each piece to a very high temperature in a carefully controlled kiln atmosphere.

Tableware, cookware and more decorative pieces are individually free-hand painted to order. Tile panels can be painted in any of the company's existing designs as well as one off themes.
The tableware collection is very durable and is oven and freezer proof, dishwasher and microwave safe and highly resistant to chipping.

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