Design: classical tradition and contemporary themes
Wedgwood's ornamental wares, especially jasper, were particularly suitable for neo-classical decoration. Many plaques and vases were embellished with scenes from classical myths or religion. The Labours of Hercules, the Muses, the activities of Apollo, Bacchus and Cupid and the Apotheoses of Homer and Virgil are some of the classical scenes adapted for Wedgwood by modellers Flaxman, Hackwood and others.
However, there also existed a growing demand for more contemporary themes, either allegorical or sentimental, to appeal to a new taste for the Romantic. Wedgwood commissioned designs – essentially from Lady Templetown – to satisfy this market: Domestic Employment, Friendship and Affliction, An Offering to Peace, and The Bourbonnais Shepherd. Other subjects were drawn from literary works: Poor Maria and Charlotte at the Tomb of Werther.
