Pastel Flowers Mudlarked Ceramic Earrings

Historical Information

Object: Two Light Flow-Blue Pottery Sherds

Fabric / Body: White earthenware with pale cobalt underglaze

Technique: Transfer-printed pattern intentionally or accidentally "flowed" during firing, creating soft, blurred blue edges

Date: c. 1835-1880

Likely Origin: Staffordshire, England

Pattern / Style: Barly to mid-Victorlan flow blue

Find Location: Essex Coast

Extra Information:

These two fragments come from a plate or shallow bowl decorated in light flow blue, a popular Victorian ceramic style created when cobalt-oxide transfer prints blurred in the kiln, producing the soft, misty edges that define the look. Pirst appearing in the 1830s, the effect was initially accidental but soon became desirable, with Staffordshire potteries refining the method by encouraging the "flow" during firing. Flow blue became an affordable alternative to costly Chinese porcelain and was widely used in middle-class homes, with patterns ranging from florals to chinoiserie landscapes. Because these wares served as everyday tableware, many were chipped, broken, and discarded, eventually washing into rivers and coastal deposits. Smoothed by time, these light flow-blue sherds preserve the gentle, hazy charm of one of the 19th century's most beloved ceramic fashions.