Source Description:

Tong Castle, Shropshire. Published in The Seats of the Nobility and Gentry:  In Great Britain and Wales.  A Collection of Select Views.  Engraved by William Angus.

Description:

An earthenware urn shaped potpourri bat printed in brown in a landscape design on a deep cream colored body, accented with blue enamel on the rims and fixed handle rings and brown enameling on the molded lion head.  The ring handles are fixed.  At the top of the body is a border painted with laurel leaves and berries between two bands of raised blue “pearls”.

Side one shows Tong Castle in Shropshire and is based on a print from Paul Sandby’s A Collection of One Hundred and Fifty Select Views, in England, Scotland and Ireland, published in 1781. This print was also used in William Angus's The Seats of the Nobility and Gentry in Great Britain and Wales published in London between 1787 and 1807. Tong Castle had an interesting history. It was built in 1762 on the site of an old 12th century castle. Designed in the Strawberry Hill Gothic style, the house was owned by several families and ended up with the Earl of Bradford. The house was neglected and in 1912 was damaged by fire. It was eventually demolished in 1954 with great fanfare as a public entertainment and is now the site of the M54 Motorway.