The story of Britain’s ceramic history spans 6000 years from the first pots created by early Neolithic farmers to 21^st century high tech applications.  

It’s a story of technological innovation, of changes in society and taste and of pioneering and driven individuals.  In the new ceramics gallery at The Salisbury Museum, sub-titled  ‘A Potted History of Britain’,  Julian Richards has tried to illustrate this long, complex and fascinating history using objects from the museum’s own collections augmented by loans from other museums and individuals. In this talk he will introduce the gallery and the ideas behind it as well as some of the frustrations at not being able to source some of the pots that he would dearly have loved to have exhibited.

Dr Julian Richards BA FSA is by training and profession an archaeologist with a speciality in British prehistory and particularly Stonehenge. He also has a long-standing fascination with ceramics of all periods, in particular the products of the Arts and Crafts movement. Although Julian has curated temporary and travelling museum exhibitions relating to Stonehenge in both the UK and abroad, this gallery is his first foray into ceramics. As a broadcaster he presented ‘Meet the Ancestors’ and ‘Blood of the Vikings’ on BBC television and ‘Mapping the Town’ on BBC Radio 4. Julian teaches and lectures widely on a range of subjects and is an Arts Society accredited lecturer.