This is a museum that can be appreciated at a number of levels.
Dr John Wall, a surgeon and prominent local figure started the Worcester Porcelain Manufactory in 1751. At the time the country was in the grip of a craze for porcelain because it was able to withstand boiling water – a vital pre requisite for a good cup of tea. Tea had recently begun to be imported from the Asian Subcontinent and was the fashionable drink at society gatherings. So guarded was the Worcester Porcelain formula that a fine of £4,000 (£0.5m today) was threatened for anyone disclosing the secret.
The setting of the museum is also interesting. It is in the centre of the famous factory site at Diglis, to where it moved in the 1800s from its original home at Warmstry House not far away. Part of the museum building was originally the school that served this industrial community. Some of the terraced housing occupied by the factory workers line surrounding streets. The site straddles the medieval walls of the city and the cathedral is close by. This provides an opportunity to see the way in which part of the city has evolved and the historic legacy of the factory on the present day appearance of the area.
Museum of Royal Worcester
Severn Street
WR1 2NE Worcester
United Kingdom
+44 (0) 1905 - 21247
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