At 11:43 27/01/2009, Ian Forbes wrote:
>The vendor isn't sure this is a sumpter pot. I'm no expert on lead
>smelting, but is there anything about this pot's design and dimensions
>that tells us that it is a sumpter pot rather than a domestic item?
Ian,
The shear thickness of the walls of the pot, perhaps 2 to 3 inches
thick, should tell you that it's not domestic. There was, perhaps
still is, a sumpter pot on the site of the Tamar Lead Smelter at
Weirquay, in Bere Ferrers parish, Devon. Unfortunately I don't have a
photo to hand but that example, as I recall, was about 3 feet in
diameter with walls about 2.5 inches thick.
Peter
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