Bronze Age Gold from Wales

Jug, tall, reddish buff stoneware, partly slipped and sprayed with green-black pigment, salt-glazed; comprising two wheel-thrown cylinders, compressed into an oval, the lower with three ribs in relief, the upper slanting backward, groove in each side, running downward from a small double circle motif, high curving lip, grooved strap handle forming a lengthy curve, the lower part of the body slip-coated, giving the salt-glaze a mottled green-black appearance, the interior glazed a lighter olive green; on the upper part, and especially on the handle, the glaze has crawled, producing a pronounced orange peel effect.

Walter Keeler is one of the leading studio potters working in Britain. His work is highly individual and energetic, yet remains functional. Keeler’s early career was defined by his radical take on the traditional medium of salt-glazed stoneware. Departing from convention, he threw each part of his objects separately and assembled them to create distinctive and exciting forms, often influenced by mundane items such as oil cans and milk churns. This ‘articulated jug’ is one of his most distinctive designs, first made in 1983. It is made in two separate sections, each precisely cut to shape and carefully fitted together.