Antique Bourne Denby Sample Bottle / Trial Glaze Bottle (c.1850s–1900s) - Option 5

A rare piece of pottery history, this small stoneware bottle was originally created not for sale, but as a sample or trial glaze bottle by Bourne of Denby, one of England’s most renowned 19th–20th century potteries.

These bottles were used in the workshop to test different clays, slips, and glazes, often with the top half dipped in Denby’s signature deep brown or black glaze, leaving the base in its natural buff stoneware. Each one is unique, bearing the subtle variations of the kiln, and together they tell the quiet story of craftsmanship and experimentation behind everyday pottery.

Dating from the 1850s to the early 1900s, they were never mass-produced or intended for retail, making them highly collectible today. Valued by pottery enthusiasts, collectors of industrial heritage, and lovers of wabi-sabi ceramics alike, they embody the timeless beauty of process, imperfection, and history.

Perfect displayed on a shelf, grouped with other stoneware, or used as a small vase for foraged stems, this piece is both an object of utility and a fragment of Denby’s working legacy.

Dimensions;
Height: 11.5cm
Top diameter: 3cm
Base diameter: 5.5cm