Medieval Jug Handle Fragment 15th 16th Century Ripley Yorkshire COA

Description

**Medieval Pottery Jug Handle Fragment**

This genuine medieval pottery fragment is part of a ceramic jug handle dating from the mid 15th to early 16th century. It was found at Ripley in North Yorkshire in March 2002. The surviving piece preserves the strong curved form of a handle that would originally have joined the shoulder and neck of a utilitarian vessel. It is an appealing, tactile example of late medieval domestic pottery and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.

The photographs show the actual item you will receive. Please use them to study the colour of the ceramic fabric, the form of the break edges, the surviving surface and the overall condition. Full sizing can be seen in the photographs. As an excavated archaeological fragment, it naturally shows soil contact, surface wear, small chips and irregular old breaks. These are expected features of an authentic pottery sherd and form part of its history rather than being modern damage.

**Late Medieval Ceramic Manufacture**

During the 15th and early 16th centuries, pottery jugs were essential household vessels. They were used for carrying, serving and storing liquids such as water, ale and other drinks. A potter formed the body of the jug from prepared clay and shaped the handle separately, usually as a pulled or rolled strip. The handle was then pressed firmly onto the vessel while the clay was still workable. Finger pressure, smoothing and joining marks can sometimes survive where the attachment was made.

Handles needed to be robust because they carried the weight of the filled vessel. Their thick section and curved profile often survive even when the thinner body of a pot has broken away. The form of this fragment therefore provides useful evidence for how medieval vessels were held and used. Its ceramic fabric also reflects the local clay, tempering material, firing conditions and workshop practices available to potters at the time.

**Ripley, North Yorkshire Provenance**

Ripley lies in North Yorkshire, a landscape with a long history of medieval settlement, farming, travel and trade. Pottery fragments recovered from such places can offer a direct connection with ordinary daily life. Complete vessels are unusual finds, while broken sherds are a much more typical part of the archaeological record. A handle fragment may have entered the ground after a jug was accidentally dropped, discarded when no longer useful or deposited with other household material.

The recorded find location and date give this piece a clear collecting history: Ripley, North Yorkshire, March 2002. That information makes the fragment especially suitable for a study collection because it can be considered alongside the regional setting and the wider chronology of late medieval pottery. No claim is made that the precise workshop can be identified from this fragment alone.

**A Genuine Piece of Everyday Medieval Life**

This is not a replica or a complete restored vessel. It is an original fragment of medieval pottery, valuable for the evidence preserved in its material, manufacture and practical form. The old breaks reveal the internal fabric, while the surviving outer surfaces show how the handle was finished and used. Small variations in colour and texture are characteristic of handmade pottery fired in historic kilns, where temperature and atmosphere were less uniform than in modern industrial production.

The piece would make an interesting addition to a collection of British archaeology, medieval ceramics, social history or Yorkshire finds. It is also well suited to educational display, handling study and comparison with other pottery fabrics and vessel forms. A jug handle is particularly easy to interpret because its function remains recognisable even as a fragment.

You will receive the exact medieval jug handle fragment shown in the photographs. It dates from the mid 15th to early 16th century, was found at Ripley in North Yorkshire in March 2002, and is supplied with a Certificate of Authenticity lifetime guarantee generic card. It is a compact and evocative survivor from the everyday material culture of late medieval England.