At 18:59 27/01/2009, Bernard Moore wrote:
>Being sure you meant to indicate that being far less than two to three
>inches thick (which it looks to be), means it is domestic, I am
>inclined to agree
>with you - considering the weight it would have to support/contain.
It is not the weight that is important but the thermal shock of
receiving the molten lead. I've had a look at the photo of the item
for sale on e-bay and I do not believe it is a sumpter pot. What it
might be is one of the crystallisation pots used in the Pattison
Process. The process enriched the proportion of silver in molten lead
by allowing it to cool under controlled conditions and then skimming
off the lead as it crystallised. See Percy, Metallurgy, vol. 3, pt.
1, (1870) pp. 121 on.
Peter
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Dr Peter Claughton,
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