One principle of nineteenth century design was the idea that the form of a piece should be...
One principle of nineteenth century design was the idea that the form of a piece should be suggestive of its function. Wedgwood's design for honey pots--with its resemblance to a bee skep--fulfills that dictum, though it is difficult to talk about function in regard to a toy size version. Its function would seem to be to charm--either a child or an adult.
The cylindrical pot with its domed lid is attached to a circular undertray trimmed with a fruiting vine border. The pot itself boasts a number of finely detailed applied sprigs separated by trellis devices. Adding to the unusual scale of the piece is the presence of two sprigs not commonly used by Wedgwood, water dieties frolicking in the surf with a dolphin and a group of standing figures in varying states of undress.