Anne Jenner
Anne Jenner (York Archaeological Trust) and Roger Inman (Volunteer) set up a table in the entrance to Husthwaite Village Hall at the joint exhibition with Coxwold last year, so that people could bring pottery they had found locally and Anne could identify it.
We brought with us York Archaeological Trust’s teaching collection of Roman and medieval pottery for people to handle. It was useful for people to compare with the pottery that local residents brought in for me to identify.
We were inundated with collections of sherds from the local fields and gardens, so much so that we could not note everything, but despite this, we were intrigued to see what the pottery found in the area looked like and how it related to pottery found in York. The results were as expected; most of the pottery you brought in was of the same types as found in York! This is probably because much of it was made in your area and used across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, though in greater concentrations in York!
What we found was an abundance of medieval white wares, particularly green glazed white wares. Despite this, there were only a few sherds of York glazed ware. It was suggested that this type was made in York, as it is often found in late 12th and early 13th century features. However, it is now thought to have been made in the Howardian Hills, due to its chemical content, though kilns producing these wares have not yet been found.
The majority of the medieval sherds that you brought in are green glazed Brandsby type jugs which were in currency in York in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. This type was locally made, probably at the known kilns at Snargate farm, Brandsby, but it is likely that they were also made at a number of yet undiscovered sites in the vicinity. Many of the jug sherds you showed to us had rilled necks, but one had a wheel stamp on it! A type of stamp, known as a seal, is frequently used to decorate York glazed wares and even Hambleton wares, but stamps are not common on Brandsby jugs.
Hambleton ware jar sherds were noted within your collections. They are a sandy white ware with a light mottled green glaze which is often bubbled, crazed and flaking off. These occur in late 14th and early 15th century contexts on excavations in York. However, instead of the medieval jug, the most common form is a wide mouthed jar, often with two handles, a bung hole and applied thumbed strip decoration.
A few medieval red fine red sandy wares were discovered amongst your sherds. These are probably from the Humber region of east Yorkshire, though similar red wares were also made at Walmgate and Blue Bridge Lane in York. They may have been part of large jugs or jars. These wares are common in York in the late 14th and 15th centuries.
There were some early post medieval wares amongst the sherds we looked at. They included a few sherds of the smaller, finer walled Cistercian ware drinking vessels which are part of a set of 16th century forms used at table. These also have a red body, but are much harder and higher fired than the Humber wares. They also have a blackish brown iron-rich, as opposed to lead based, glaze with and slip decoration.
A lot of Ryedale ware sherds were shown to us. These wares are typically found in late 16th to early 18th century contexts. This ware type makes a departure from the white medieval wares, though it is still green glazed, as it has a buff, red, grey or mixed coloured fabric, but the repertoire of forms is fairly constant within this range. In fact, they form a set of ‘Country pottery’ including platters or flanged dishes, handled jars, bung hole cisterns and straight sided jars. They were first noted by Raymond Hayes who excavated in the area in the mid 20th century. He has outlined several likely and actual kiln sites in the Howardian Hills, including Coxwold, Stearsby and Yearsley for example. There may be many more, as yet undiscovered kiln sites, producing Ryedale wares, in this area and North Yorkshire in general.
Many of the production centres discussed above were probably operated seasonally, in conjunction with farming activities, probably when there was less to do on the land. The wares that they produced may also have been used by the same groups of people, though they are also found in quantity in York and its immediate environs. Are there more to be found, perhaps located near to longstanding farm buildings, in your area too?
Later post medieval wares include an English stoneware inkwell, slip ware bowls, puncheon and posset cups. These may have been made and used in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Later post medieval wares include cream ware, willow pattern transfer printed and sponged wares of the 18th and 19th centuries. All very interesting to us, so please keep looking!
November 2018