Black basalt Tripod pastille burner supported by Dolphins - 1807
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Black basalt Tripod pastille burner supported by Dolphins
© Wedgwood Museum
Pastille, or incense, burners were not only ornaments in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, they also served the purpose of disguising unwanted smells from unwashed bodies, and foul drains. This particular black basalt model with its dolphin supports was popular in the early years of the nineteenth century.
This pastille, or incense, burner with its triple dolphin supports was originally produced as a small-scale model in the 18th century. In 1807 the Bishop of Winchester ordered a much larger, but otherwise identical, version ‘for perfuming large halls’. Thomas Byerley (1747-1810) wrote in a memo: 'I have just been attending the Bishop of Winchester, who has laid out some guineas in ornaments, and wants a vase for perfuming large halls, of the form 290 Dolphin Tripod (No. 290 pattern), about 5 times as large as what we now make, that 3 or 4 pastiles may be burnt (sic) at once . I have promised him the one shall be made, and that he shall not be charged for the model, as it is likely to sell, and these things are coming more and more into use ... It is to be black ornamented as the small ones are.' Byerley felt not only would they sell well, that although they would make some in jasper, they would sell better in black basalt on account of the discolouration from use in the burning process.. At the time pastille burning for the purpose of purifying the air, was much in vogue, and pastille burners could be ordered from the Wedgwood factory in a range of sizes and ceramic bodies to suit individual customer tastes. This tripod form with dolphin supports features as entry 496 in the Shape Number One Book.
- Type of object: Ornamental ware/pastille burner
- Mark: WEDGWOOD [Impressed]
- Year first produced: 1807
- Body: Black basalt
- Material: Ceramic
- Decoration: Ornamented
- Accession number: 1134
- Dimensions: 320 mm (height), 300 mm (diameter)
