We’ve reached week six of our ongoing #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton mega-thread round-up, where we bring together the previous week’s @MintonArchive tweets from Philip and Zillah Wadsworth’s “Minton” manuscript.
If you’re new to this Archive-related endeavour we recommend checking out our very first blog on the topic as it covers the what, the why, and the how (but maybe not the how long for – it’s a 40,000 word document after all!). As always you can skip back to any of the previous WHoM instalments using the links below, and if you’re not on Twitter but would still like a more realtime feel to your updates you can follow our tweets via RSS instead.
WHoM:1
(01/04/20 – 07/04/20)
WHoM:2
(08/04/20 – 14/04/20)
WHoM:3
(15/04/20 – 21/04/20)
WHoM:4
(22/04/20 – 28/04/20)
WHoM:5
(29/04/20 – 05/05/20)
“In addition to Prince Albert, the Duke of Wellington, and a number of bishops, there were also some 30 foreign princes present. Herbert Minton was able to show them examples of the tiles made by the new process [and demonstrate] the press.” [58/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 6, 2020
“Orders followed from many countries for tiling and re-tiling abbeys, cathedrals and churches, public buildings, mansions and the many more modest houses in the new suburbs of the growing industrial towns.” [59/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 6, 2020
In 1844 Minton was commissioned to make a tessellated pavement for Osborne House, Queen Victoria’s home on the Isle of Wight – these pavements consisted of a variety of small geometric shapes in different colours assembled to form mosaic patterns. [60/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 7, 2020
A. W. N. Pugin was another admirer of Minton’s encaustic tiles and used them in his designs for the new Houses of Parliament (as well as designing a certain amount of tableware for the company too). [61/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 9, 2020
Pugin wrote to Herbert “‘I declare your St. Stephen’s tiles the finest done in the tile way; vastly superior to any ancient work; in fact they are the best tiles in the world and I think my patterns and your workmanship go ahead of anything.'”.[62/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 9, 2020
Minton tiles and tessellated pavements would also be used in the Hall of Assembly in the Capitol, Washington D.C.; in Melbourne’s Town Hall; in St. George’s Hall, Liverpool; and in the cathedrals of Ely, Salisbury, Exeter, & Lichfield.[63/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 10, 2020
As well as working to perfect new methods of making tiles Herbert Minton was also looking at ways to improve the process of decoration, applying the process of lithography to ceramics 20 years after it was first invented.[64/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 11, 2020
A firm called Collins & Reynolds had showed Herbert “‘trials they had made of transferring to pottery impressions taken on paper from […] metal and stone'” and, interested in the process, he supplied proper enamel colours for further experiments.[65/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 11, 2020
When, in 1848, Collins & Reynolds were granted a patent “For improvements in ornamenting china, earthenware and glass” Herbert bought a share in it. Initially used on tiles, within a year this process was being applied to tableware as well.[66/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 12, 2020
This process would become known within Minton as “New Press” or “Block Printing” and was “a most important addition to the methods available for decorating pottery”, providing “a cheaper and quicker method of applying attractive decoration”. [67/] #WadsworthsHistoryofMinton
— The Minton Archive (@MintonArchive) May 12, 2020