Stoneware: Antique Victorian Foot & Bed Warmer

Stoneware: Antique Victorian Foot & Bed Warmer

R 600.00
Sale price  R 600.00 Regular price 
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Stoneware: Antique Victorian Foot & Bed Warmer
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Stoneware: Antique Victorian Foot & Bed Warmer

Late-Victorian ceramic hot water bottle showcasing the ingenuity of historic European utility ware, cast in a heavy, cream-glazed stoneware body designed to slowly radiate intense thermal heat. 

Colloquially referred to by collectors as a "pig bottle," it features a distinctive cylindrical shape with a flat resting base, a prominent moulded top filling neck wrapped in decorative leaf reliefs. This bottle has its incredibly elusive original screw-threaded ceramic stopper with its thick rubber sealing washer intact. 

Style this historic crock as an immediate rustic visual anchor on a farmhouse kitchen counter, an open timber bookshelf, or utilize it as a highly unique architectural doorstop.

Hand-cast from thick, high-density insulating stoneware engineered to retain boiling temperature for hours beneath heavy bedding before rubber variants became commercially viable. Corresponds precisely to the celebrated, iconic transfer-print shapes produced by The Old Fulham Pottery (London, established 1671) and distributed by global retailers like Boots The Chemists. While the original black typographic text transfer has completely worn away through historic scrubbing, the piece retains its debossed mold number "2" near the neck and its raw incised base stamp.

Original Intended Use: Victorian-era under-blanket foot warmer and domestic bedding heater. Alternate Suggested Use: Country farmhouse kitchen styling accent, vintage doorstop, or structural bookshelf bookend.

More Details
  • Authentic antique late-Victorian cream stoneware bed warmer.
  • Highly collectible historic "pig bottle" configuration with flat base.
  • Complete with its original matching screw-thread ceramic stopper.
  • Accented with a beautifully detailed decorative leaf relief collar.
  • Exceptional rustic pottery piece radiating immense tactile texture and warmth.
Did you Know?

John Dwight founded the legendary Old Fulham Pottery in London during the reign of King Charles II, securing the first British patent to manufacture stone crocking.

By the late 19th century, their famous "The Adaptable" warming bottles completely revolutionized winter comfort. Filled with boiling water and slid into a linen sleeve, these heavy clay vessels were placed at the foot of cold beds to survive harsh winter nights before modern electricity.

Origin & Era

Made in England, c. 1890-1910, making this stoneware bottle 115+ years.

Dimensions

Approximate Dimensions: Diameter 11cm, Height 12.5cm (including spout), Length 26cm, Width 11cm.

Vintage Condition

Very good antique condition with magnificent structural presence and a beautifully weathered exterior patina.

Visible Flaws: A historic, completely stable and dry shrinkage hairline underglaze seam from the original kiln firing sits on the upper neck; minor, authentic localized rust discoloration spots and shelf friction scuffs on the base are present from genuine age and century-old household use.

Price
R 600.00
Payment Options

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