Plate Made by Belle Vue Pottery, Hull, c.1826-1841
This plate is pottery but has been cleverly designed to look like itâs made from real vine leaves. You can feel as well as see the design because the plate has a raised texture. This makes the leavesâ edges and veins stand out. The plate is covered with bright green glaze to bring the pattern to life. You can see the glaze has gathered in dark pools around the edges of the leaves, making them stand out even more. This plate is in perfect condition but is over 160 years old. It was made at the Belle Vue Pottery, which existed on the Humber bank from 1826-1841. The pottery site was near to where Kingston Retail Park is today. The Belle Vue Pottery was set up by merchant William Bell. He bought the site for £1700. Bell decided to name his pottery after a street recently built nearby called Belle Vue Terrace. William Bell began making ceramics on a large scale from 1826. He extended the factory that already existed on the site and employed as many as thirty apprentices. Most Belle Vue pots, including this one, were made from good quality white earthenware. The majority were not given a makerâs mark to identify where they were made. This plate is unusual because it has a stamped mark. The mark includes a picture of two bells, which William Bell probably used as a reference to his own name. Most of the pots made at Belle Vue were decorated with printed patterns. Others had hand painted floral designs or were decorated with different coloured liquid clays called âslipâ. Pieces covered with brightly coloured glaze like this one are quite rare in comparison. These pieces were often moulded to create textured patterns, rather than being turned on a wheel. Rather than being painted or printed on afterwards, the decoration is part of the structure of this plate.
