File:Medieval ceramic Midlands White Ware glazed vessel fragments (FindID 138628).jpg

English: Two wheel-thrown ceramic Midlands White Ware richly glazed body sherds, dating to the 13th/ 14th century, between AD 1200 – 1400 (varying thickness from 5 - 7mm; collective weight: 18.3g). The vessel sherds are in a worn but fair condition. They form part of a large collection of vessel sherds found by the finder including Iron rich sandy ware and Midlands Purple vessel sherds (see related records). Altogether, these sherds highlight a 13th/ 14th century domestic collection that appears to have been thrown into a midden dump or pit, possibly close to a settlement.

These sherds have a hard fired coarse fabric, which is pale orange or off-white in colour.

Most of the sherds have a numerous quantity of subangular to subrounded quartz grains with rare subangular iron ore fragments. There also appears to be occasional linear burnt out inclusions, which may be the remains of organic material within the fabric. Most of the sherds have a rich green copper glaze on one side with ‘combing’.

In the publication listed below, D. Ford has detailed the following information:

This ware is also called light-bodied sandy ware or buff/ white sandy ware. The fabric contains moderate to common subangular to subrounded quartz grains, rare to occasional subangular iron ore fragments as well as occasional burnt out inclusions, which may be organic material. There are fine and coarse groups within this ware, which is usually hard fired to a fairly even exterior of off white/ cream to pale orange salmon/ pink. Vessels can have a reduced pale to dark grey core. Poorly fired or overfired unglazed examples may be confused with iron-rich sandy ware. Vessels are usually wheelthrown and well finished, while some vessels may be hand built and wheelfinished. This ware has a range of forms:

• Cooking pots and jars: usually undecorated and unglazed. Profiles are well formed, either barrel shaped or globular, with a small range of simple everted rim forms, some of which have a lid seat. • Jugs and jars, small drinking jugs and bottles: appear in a range of forms including squat, rounded and baluster shapes, generally with strap handles. The jugs are often decorated and glazed.

Decoration of cooking pots, jars and jugs, where present, includes red paint and green glaze applied in untidy stripes, or an almost complete coating of green glaze over a plain or decorated body. The glaze colour can be anything from a yellowish green to a copper green. Overfired examples have purplish or dark brown glaze and brown paint stripes. Strap handles often have short, deep stabbed designs, which are as much an aid to even firing a s a decorative technique.
• Dishes, small to large bowls and pancheons: these generally have straight flaring walls, flat bases and simple everted rims which are flat-topped and lipped. Some examples have combed, incised or thumb decoration. • Pipkins, dripping pans, skillets and other vessels also appear in this ware.

A general date for this ware in from the late 12th – 14th century AD. A large production area for Midlands White Ware has been discovered at Chilvers Coton, nr Nuneaton in Warwickshire, as well as other kilns sites in the Sneyd Green area (Stoke-on-Trent). This ware appears throughout Staffordshire as well as other Midlands counties.

Ref: Ford, D, A, 1995, ‘Medieval Pottery in Staffordshire, AD 800 – 1600: A Review’, pages 33-5.