George Washington chimney ornament, Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom

Exhibition Label:
"Staffordshire Chimney Ornaments from the Nineteenth Century in the Collection of The University of Kansas Museum of Art," Jun-1973, Lea Rosson
From the 1840s to the early 1870s, one distinguishing characteristic of Staffordshire chimney ornaments was the use of a blue underglaze. This color was applied after the first firing, and then fired again at a high temperature. It was thus a more permanent color and less liable to chip. The overglaze colors were then applied and fired at a lower temperature. By ca.1870, this process had been largely abandoned in favor of a speedier one which left most of the piece a glazed white.