Welsh finds: Ewenny pottery, miners and dragons

We are based just outside Pontypridd, so Welsh pieces always catch our eye: pottery, mining mementoes, a dragon or two, and the odd surprise.

Ewenny: four centuries of Welsh pottery

In the village of Ewenny, near Bridgend, a pottery has been working since 1610, making it the oldest working pottery in Wales. The Jenkins family has run it since the early 1800s, when Evan Jenkins married the daughter of the owner, John Morgan, and it is still in the family today.

Ewenny makes red earthenware from local clay. Its distinctive mottled glazes come from a method developed by David John Jenkins, in which a pot is dipped in one glaze and then splashed with another. In the late Victorian period the pottery even had an Arts and Crafts connection: the London designer Horace Elliot worked with the Jenkins brothers from 1883 to 1913, and some pieces carry his fleur-de-lys mark. Our hand-made green drip-glaze jug is a lovely example of that long tradition.

Creigiau: copper lustre from Cardiff

Closer to home, Creigiau Pottery made its famous copper lustre ware with a blue lining from the late 1940s until the early 1980s, and Jenny worked there in the 1980s. You can read the full story in our article on Creigiau Pottery.

Coal and brass

For generations, the valleys of South Wales were built on coal. Brass miner figures, often holding a lamp or pushing a coal truck, became popular keepsakes and gifts, a proud reminder of the industry and the communities around it. Our brass miners include one on a wooden base with a coal truck and a Cymru badge.

Dragons, rarebit and a pink pig

Rounding out our Welsh finds: a linen tea towel with Y Ddraig Goch, the red dragon of the Welsh flag; a Fortnum & Mason Welsh rarebit jar; and a cheerful pink glass pig on a piece of Welsh slate.