THIS is where crawling around on my hands an knees got me....

With Ceramic Art London coming up in three weeks 2012 is proving just as busy as last year. Still making and preparing all the bits and pieces that I will need for my display. Pint in hand with good reason to celebrate, I have finally had some success with my local materials. Just a quick snap but here it is...

This little beauty is made entirely from materials collected near my home village of Lode. The 'clay' is very dark and high in iron, but incredibly stands up to glaze melt temperature. It is a glacial deposit rather than the fen clays, which all melt at stoneware temps. The glaze is developed along the lines of the early Chinese glazes, which later gave rise to the famous celadons. It is of relatively simple composition but still involves much crushing, grinding and sieving.
Also, the site at which I have collected samples of various fen clays, courtesy of the Cambridge University Archaeology Dept. has become a major discovery. Finds include Bronze Age swords and various boats. Images can be seen here.