What Is Wedgwood Blue?

Origin

• Today's sought-after items of Wedgwood blue porcelain would never have existed if Josiah Wedgwood had not caught smallpox as a young boy. He survived, but lost the use of his right knee, which made it impossible for him to use a potter's wheel.

  Wedgwood, however, was a potter born and bred. His father and grandfather threw earthenware vessels on the wheel all their lives, and Josiah wanted to continue his family's trade.

Invention

• After long years of research into alternate ways of creating pottery, Wedgwood opened his own factory in his 20s. Using the latest technology available--based on the steam engine of Industrial Revolution fame--along with the most innovative manufacturing techniques of the time, Wedgwood invented several new types of fine porcelain, including jasper ware, which most often came in the color blue.

Refinement

• Josiah Wedgwood opened his factory in 1759, yet Wedgwood blue porcelain vases, plates and other items weren't produced until many years later, beginning in 1777. Records still exist of more than 5,000 experiments Wedgwood conducted before arriving at the perfect formula for jasper ware, his most well-known creation.

  Artisans in his factory soon set to work creating works of art in this new type of porcelain, often painting their finished product a light powdery grayish blue, or sometimes a rich cobalt.

History

• According to The Potteries website, the popularity of Wedgwood blue porcelain grew until it was considered "the height of fashion" by 1795, the year of Josiah's death. Public interest began to subside around 1811, and the Wedgwood factory stopped producing vases--the most sought-after item of Wedgwood blue--around 1817. Creation of jasper ware in any color ceased entirely in 1829.

  Experiments in making jasper ware continued, even though no new items were produced. Wedgwood's grandsons began production again in 1860, and jasper ware items in every color, including the trademark blue, were made regularly until 1941, when World War II stopped production. Starting in 1948, Wedgwood blue items were once again created for public consumption.

Today

• The Wedgwood factory still operates today, producing porcelain items for both collectors and the general public. Wedgwood celebrated its 250th anniversary in 2009, releasing special items for collectors--including a porcelain crown in classic Wedgwood blue.

  Prestigious designers, such as Vera Wang, work with Wedgwood to create lines of beautiful and exclusive porcelain table ware. Items of Wedgwood blue, however, are produced more rarely. The Wedgwood website provides a page for interested collectors of original jasper ware, with prices--in English pounds--beginning in the thousands.