Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 3/4 inches

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). This fable is basically about how a mother noticed that her daughter was walking crooked and scraping herself along the stones on the bottom of the river. She told her to walk straight so she would not hurt herself so much. The daughter asked her mother to model the way to walk. What she saw was that her mother also walked crooked! The moral of the story is you notice faults in others that you don't see in yourself.

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 inches

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). This pattern depicts the story of the Tortoise and the Hare in which, having been ridiculed by the Hare for moving so slowly, the Tortoise challenges him to a race. The Hare soon leaves the tortoise far behind and he is so confident of winning that he decides to take a nap. When he wakes up, however, he finds that the Tortoise has overtaken him and is so far ahead that he is unable to catch him up before the winning post. The moral is: "slow and steady wins the race."

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 inches diameter

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). The Hares were so persecuted by the other beasts, they did not know where to go. As soon as they saw a single animal approach them, off they used to run. One day they saw a troop of wild Horses stampeding about, and in quite a panic all the Hares scuttled off to a lake. But just as they got near the bank of the lake, a troop of Frogs, frightened in their turn by the approach of the Hares scuttled off, and jumped into the water. "Truly," said one of the Hares, "things are not so bad as they seem. The moral of the story: " There is always someone worse off than yourself."

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 inches diameter

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). A Dove saw an Ant fall into a brook. The Ant struggled in vain to reach the bank, and in pity, the Dove dropped a blade of straw close beside it. Clinging to the straw like a shipwrecked sailor to a broken spar, the Ant floated safely to shore. Soon after, the Ant saw a man getting ready to kill the Dove with a stone. But just as he cast the stone, the Ant stung him in the heel, so that the pain made him miss his aim, and the startled Dove flew to safety in a distant wood. The moral of the story: "A kindness is never wasted."

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 inches diameter

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). A raven seized a piece of cheese and carried his spoils up to his perch high in a tree. A fox came up and walked in circles around the raven, planning a trick. 'What is this?' cried the fox. 'O raven, the elegant proportions of your body are remarkable, and you have a complexion that is worthy of the king of the birds! If only you had a voice to match, then you would be first among the fowl!' The fox said these things to trick the raven and the raven fell for it: he let out a great squawk and dropped his cheese. By thus showing off his voice, the raven let go of his spoils. The fox then grabbed the cheese and said, 'O raven, you do have a voice, but no brains to go with it!' The moral of the story: "If you follow your enemies' advice, you will get hurt."

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 inches diameter

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). A heron stands by the waterside one morning, surrounded by a rich choice of fish which it ignores since it is not ready to eat. During the afternoon it rejects humbler types of fish as unworthy, hoping for better pickings but, by evening, is so hungry that it settles for a snail. The moral of the story: one should not be over-fastidious in making choices since, as the ancient proverb proposes, 'He that will not when he may, when he will he shall have nay.'

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 10 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). A fox invites the stork to eat with him and provides soup in a bowl, which the fox can lap up easily; however, the stork cannot drink it with its beak. The stork then invites the fox to a meal, which is served in a narrow-necked vessel. It is easy for the stork to access but impossible for the fox. The moral drawn is that the trickster must expect trickery in return and that the golden rule of conduct is for one to do to others what one would wish for oneself.

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 6 1/2 inches diameter

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). A house-mouse comes across an oyster and tries eating it, only for the shell to snap shut, bringing him at once both death and a tomb. t has been variously interpreted, either as a warning against gluttony or as a caution against unwary behavior.

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 3/4 inches

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). A tortoise, becoming tired of her humble home, resolved to visit foreign lands, but she did not know which way to go. She repaired to two ducks to show her the road, and they told her that the best way was to travel through the air. On her imploring their help, they made her grasp a stick with her mouth, and so they bore her aloft. As they flew along, the gaping people beneath shouted at the sight of the spectacle. The vain tortoise mistook their shouts for applause. I am surely a queen, said she. But alas! as she opened her mouth to speak, she lost her hold of the stick, and, falling to the ground, was dashed into pieces. The moral of the story: Those who are not able to roam should stay at home.

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 3/4 inches diameter

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). Two pigeons live together in the closest friendship and 'cherish for each other/The love that brother hath for brother.' One of them yearns for a change of scene and eventually flies off on what he promises will be only a three-day adventure. During this time he is caught in a storm with little shelter, ensnared, attacked by predators and then injured by a boy with a sling, returning with relief to roam no more.

Maker: Brown-Westhead, Moore & Co.

Pottery: Cauldon Place

Place: Hanley, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 9 February 1877

Dimensions: 9 1/4 inches diameter

Notes: The pattern name 'Fables' refers to the Fables of Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). A stag saw his shadow reflected in the water, and greatly admired the size of his horns, but felt angry with himself for having such weak feet. While he was thus contemplating himself, a Lion appeared at the pool. The Stag betook himself to flight, and kept himself with ease at a safe distance from the Lion, until he entered a wood and became entangled with his horns. The Lion quickly came up with him and caught him. When too late he thus reproached himself: "Woe is me! How have I deceived myself! These feet which would have saved me I despised, and I gloried in these antlers which have proved my destruction." The moral of the story: What is most truly valuable is often underrated.

Story: In La Fontaine's telling, Bertrand the monkey persuades Raton the cat to pull chestnuts from the embers amongst which they are roasting, promising him a share. As the cat scoops them from the fire one by one, burning his paw in the process, the monkey gobbles them up. They are disturbed by a maid entering and the cat gets nothing for its pains. It is from this fable that the French get their idiom Tirer les marrons du feu, meaning to act as someone's dupe or, deriving from that, to benefit from the dirty work of others.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood. The Monkey and the Cat is best known as a fable adapted by Jean de La Fontainte that appeared in the second collection of his Fables in 1679. Although there is no evidence that the story existed before the 15th century, it began to appear in collections of Aesop's Fables from the 17th century.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood. A wolf comes upon a lamb and, in order to justify taking its life, accuses it of various misdemeanors, all of which the lamb proves to be impossible. Losing patience, the wolf says the offences must have been committed by someone else in the family and that it does not propose to delay its meal by inquiring any further. The morals drawn are that the tyrant can always find an excuse for his tyranny and that the unjust will not listen to the reasoning of the innocent.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood. In the fable a crow has found a piece of cheese and retired to a branch to eat it. A fox, wanting it for himself, flatters the crow, calling it beautiful and wondering whether its voice is as sweet to match. When it lets out a caw, the cheese falls and is devoured by the fox. The story is used as a warning against listening to flattery.

Story: Aesop titled this story, "The Frogs Who Desired a King." According to the earliest source, Phaedrus, the story concerns a group of frogs who called on the great god Zeus to send them a king. He threw down a log, which fell in their pond with a loud splash and terrified them. Eventually one of the frogs peeped above the water and, seeing that it was no longer moving, soon all hopped upon it and made fun of their king. Then the frogs made a second request for a real king and were sent a water snake (or later, a stork or heron) that started eating them. Once more the frogs appealed to Zeus, but this time he replied that they must face the consequences of their request. The original context of the story, as related by Phaedrus, makes it clear that people feel the need of laws but are impatient of personal restraint. His closing advice is to be content for fear of worse.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Story: Known by the generic title, "The Lion's Share," the early Latin version of Phaedrus begins with the reflection that "Partnership with the mighty is never trustworthy". It then relates how a cow, a goat, and a sheep go hunting together with a lion. When it comes to dividing the spoil, the lion says, "I take the first portion because of my title, since I am addressed as king; the second portion you will assign to me, since I’m your partner; then because I am the stronger, the third will follow me; and an accident will happen to anyone who touches the fourth."

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Story: Also known as "The Tortoise and the Eagle." A tortoise, discontented with his lowly life, and envious of the birds he saw disporting themselves in the air, begged an eagle to teach him to fly. The eagle protested that it was idle for him to try, as nature had not provided him with wings; but the tortoise pressed him with entreaties and promises of treasure, insisting that it could only be a question of learning the craft of the air. So at length the eagle consented to do the best he could for him, and picked him up in his talons. Soaring with him to a great height in the sky he then let him go, and the wretched tortoise fell headlong and was dashed to pieces on a rock. The moral of the story: Nothing can be either safe, or easy, that's unnatural.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Story: Also known as "The Dog and His Reflection," in the story, a dog that is carrying a stolen bone, or piece of meat or cheese, looks down as it is crossing a stream and sees its own reflection in the water. Taking it for another dog carrying something better, it opens its mouth to bark at the "other" and in doing so drops what it was carrying. The moral is, "He who covets often loses all."

For Jean de la Fontaine (Fables) the point is not to be taken in by appearances. In his account, the dog attacks its reflection and falls into the water. As he struggles to swim to shore, he relaxes his grip on his plunder and loses both 'shadow and substance'.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Story: A lion threatens a mouse that wakes him from sleep. The mouse begs forgiveness and makes the point that such unworthy prey would bring the lion no honor. The lion then agrees and sets the mouse free. Later, the lion is netted by hunters. Hearing it roaring, the mouse remembers its clemency and frees it by gnawing through the ropes. The moral of the story is that mercy brings its reward and that there is no being so small that it cannot help a greater.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Story: The story concerns a Hare who ridicules a slow-moving Tortoise. Tired of the Hare's arrogant behavior, the Tortoise challenges him to a race. The hare soon leaves the tortoise behind and, confident of winning, takes a nap midway through the race. When the Hare awakes however, he finds that his competitor, crawling slowly but steadily, has arrived before him. The later version of the story in La Fontaine's Fables, while more long-winded, differs hardly at all from Aesop's.

As in several other fables by Aesop, the lesson it is teaching appears ambiguous. In Classical times it was not the Tortoise’s plucky conduct in taking on a bully that was emphasized but the Hare’s foolish over-confidence. When the fable entered the European tradition, the moral centered around perseverance: "Slow and steady wins the race."

Story: A Fox fell into a well, and though it was not very deep, he found that he could not get out again. After he had been in the well a long time, a thirsty Goat came by. The Goat thought the Fox had gone down to drink, and so he asked if the water was good. “The finest in the whole country,” said the crafty Fox, “jump in and try it. There is more than enough for both of us.” The thirsty Goat immediately jumped in and began to drink. The Fox just as quickly jumped on the Goat’s back and leaped from the tip of the Goat’s horns out of the well. The foolish Goat now saw what a plight he had got into, and begged the Fox to help him out. But the Fox was already on his way to the woods. “If you had as much sense as you have beard, old fellow,” he said as he ran, “you would have been more cautious about finding a way to get out again before you jumped in.” The moral of the story: Look before you leap.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Story: A fox invites the stork to eat with him and provides soup in a bowl, which the fox can lap up easily; however, the stork cannot drink it with its beak. The stork then invites the fox to a meal, which is served in a narrow-necked vessel. It is easy for the stork to access but impossible for the fox. The moral drawn is that the trickster must expect trickery in return and that the golden rule of conduct is for one to do to others what one would wish for oneself.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: 1879+

Dimensions: 6 x 6 inches

Notes: This from a series of 12 tiles in the Aesop's Fables series by Mintons. The designer was probably Thomas Allen who worked for Mintons early in his career and then moved on to Wedgwood.

Maker: Mintons

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 14 September 1880

Dimensions: 10 inches diameter

Maker: George Jones & Sons

Pottery: Trent Potteries

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: c. 1880-1890

Dimensions: 8 3/4 inches diameter

Notes: The initials H.O.J. stand for Horace Overton Jones, a son of George Jones and the designer of the Familiar Flowers patterns.

Maker: George Jones & Sons

Pottery: Trent Potteries

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: c. 1880-1890

Dimensions: 8 3/4 inches diameter

Notes: The initials H.O.J. stand for Horace Overton Jones, a son of George Jones and the designer of the Familiar Flowers patterns.

Maker: George Jones & Sons

Pottery: Trent Potteries

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: c. 1880-1890

Dimensions: 8 3/4 inches diameter

Notes: The initials H.O.J. stand for Horace Overton Jones, a son of George Jones and the designer of the Familiar Flowers patterns.

Maker: George Jones & Sons

Pottery: Trent Potteries

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: c. 1880-1890

Dimensions: 8 3/4 inches diameter

Notes: The initials H.O.J. stand for Horace Overton Jones, a son of George Jones and the designer of the Familiar Flowers patterns.

Maker: George Jones & Sons

Pottery: Trent Potteries

Place: Stoke, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: c. 1880-1890

Dimensions: 8 3/4 inches diameter

Notes: The initials H.O.J. stand for Horace Overton Jones, a son of George Jones and the designer of the Familiar Flowers patterns.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 7 1/4 inches diameter

Notes: George Washington died in his bedchamber at Mount Vernon on December 14, 1799. His last will outlined his desire to be buried at home at Mount Vernon. Washington additionally made provisions for a new brick tomb to be constructed after his death, which would replace the original yet quickly deteriorating family burial vault. In 1831, Washington’s body was transferred to the new tomb, along with the remains of Martha Washington and other family members.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 6 1/2 inches diameter

Notes: The Royal Exchange in London was founded in the 16th century by the merchant Sir Thomas Gresham on the suggestion of his factor Richard Clough to act as a center of commerce for the City of London. The site was provided by the City of London Corporation and the Worshipful Company of Mercers, who still jointly own the freehold. It is trapezoidal in shape and is flanked by Cornhill and Threadneedle Street, which converge at Bank junction in the heart of the City. It lies in the ward of Cornhill.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 8 1/4 inches diameter

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 6 1/2 inches diameter

Notes: The Byward Tower, sited at the south-west corner of the Tower of London complex next to the moat, is the great gatehouse of the Outer Ward of the Tower of London and was built by King Henry III between 1238 - 1272 to offer additional protection to the central keep. The tower comprised a series of defenses to deter intruders including a drawbridge in the causeway, arrow loops in the twin towers and two portcullises. The chief architect and master builder was Henry de Reyns together with John of Gloucester and Robert of Beverley. It is thought to have been built adjacent to the Warder's Hall and from this siting the tower derived its name (By the Warders). The Byward Tower was further strengthened during King Richard II's reign in 1381 following the Peasants Revolt, when Richard and his mother, Joan, Countess of Kent, sheltered in the Tower.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 7 3/8 inches diameter

Notes: Government House is located in Kings Domain, Melbourne, Australia. It was opened in 1876, on land that had originally been set aside in 1841. It was designed by William Wardell in the Italianate style, and modelled to some extent on Queen Victoria's Osborne House residence, to which it bears a strong resemblance.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 7 3/8 inches diameter

Notes: New York City Hall is the seat of New York City government, located at the center of City Hall Park in the Civic Center area of Lower Manhattan. Constructed from 1803 to 1812, the building is the oldest city hall in the United States that still houses its original governmental functions. In 1802 the City held a competition for a new City Hall. The first prize of $350 was awarded to Joseph-François Mangin and John McComb Jr.

Mount Vernon was the plantation of George Washington, the first President of the United States, and his wife, Martha Washington. The estate is on the banks of the Potomac River in Fairfax County, Virginia. The Washington family owned land in the area since the time of Washington's great-grandfather in 1674. Around 1734 they embarked on an expansion of the estate that continued under George Washington, who began leasing the estate in 1754, but did not become its sole owner until 1761. The mansion was built of wood in a loose Palladian style; the original house was built by George Washington's father Augustine, around 1734.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 8 2/5 inches diameter

Notes: The Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge stood from 1855 to 1897 across the Niagara River and was the world's first working railway suspension bridge. It spanned 825 feet and stood 2.5 miles downstream of Niagara Falls, where it connected Niagara Falls, Ontario to Niagara Falls, New York. Trains used the upper of its two decks, while pedestrians and carriages used the lower. The bridge was the idea of Canadian politicians, and it was built by an American company and a Canadian company.

The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. The residence was designed by Irish-born architect James Hoban in the neoclassical style. Hoban modelled the building on Leinster House in Dublin, a building which today houses the Oireachtas, the Irish legislature. Construction took place between 1792 and 1800 using Aquia Creek sandstone painted white.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 8 1/4 inches diameter

Notes: Notre-Dame de Paris, meaning "Our Lady of Paris, referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral was consecrated to the Virgin Mary and considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture. The cathedral's construction began in 1160 under Bishop Maurice de Sully and was largely complete by 1260, though it was modified frequently in the following centuries. In the 1790s, Notre-Dame suffered desecration during the French Revolution; much of its religious imagery was damaged or destroyed. In the 19th century, the cathedral was the site of the coronation of Napoleon I and the funerals of many Presidents of the French Republic.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 8 2/5 inches diameter

Notes: Canada’s Parliament Buildings are home to the federal government in Ottawa. Designed in a Gothic Revival style, the buildings officially opened on 6 June 1866, about a year before Confederation. On 3 February 1916, a fire destroyed all but the Parliamentary Library. Reconstruction began later that year. At the time of Confederation, few building projects on as large a scale as the one proposed for the Parliament Buildings had been completed. A competition was therefore organized in 1859 to find suitable architects for three federal buildings, including a Parliament building (the Centre Block) and two adjacent administrative buildings (the East and West Blocks). After discussions between Public Works commissioners and Governor General Sir Edmund Walker Head, the picturesque Gothic Revival style was chosen because it was thought to best represent parliamentary democracy. The Centre Block was awarded in 1859 to Thomas Fuller and Chilion Jones, and was reworked in 1863 by Fuller and Charles Baillairgé.

The Central Post Office was a historic building in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was constructed in 1876 in the Second Empire style. The Post Office was originally located in what is today Confederation Square, and was demolished in order to construct the grand public space.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 7 3/8 inches diameter

Notes: The Massachusetts State House is the state capitol and seat of government for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, located in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston. The building houses the Massachusetts General Court and the offices of the Governor of Massachusetts. The building, designed by architect Charles Bulfinch, was completed in January 1798 at a cost of $133,333. It is considered a masterpiece of Federal architecture and among Bulfinch's finest works.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885, Produced c. 1891-1896

Dimensions: 7 1/4 inches diameter

Notes: Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbor, Middle Harbor, North Harbor and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is natural harbor of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbor is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (part of the South Pacific Ocean). It is the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbor Bridge. The location of the first European settlement and colony on the Australian mainland, Port Jackson has continued to play a key role in the history and development of Sydney. The first recorded European discovery of Sydney Harbor was by Lieutenant James Cook in 1770. Cook named the inlet after Sir George Jackson, one of the Lord Commissioners of the British Admiralty, and Judge Advocate of the Fleet.

The Town Hall in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia houses the chambers of the Lord Mayor of Sydney and council offices. Construction commenced in 1869 in the Second Empire style. It was designed to be a symbol of the wealth and status of the city. The building was constructed in two stages, Stage I: 1868 - 1878 and Stage II: (Main Hall) 1885 - 1890. The Town Hall design was the result of a competition, won by J. H. Willson.

Maker: Brownhills Pottery Co.

Place: Tunstall, Staffordshire, England

Material: Earthenware

Date: Rd. 1885

Dimensions: 6 1/2 inches diameter

Notes: Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is a large, mainly Gothic abbey church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United Kingdom's most notable religious buildings and the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English and, later, British monarchs. The building itself was a Benedictine monastic church until the monastery was dissolved in 1539. Between 1540 and 1556, the abbey had the status of a cathedral. Since 1560, the building is no longer an abbey or a cathedral, having instead the status of a Church of England "Royal Peculiar"—a church responsible directly to the sovereign.

The Albert Memorial, directly north of the Royal Albert Hall in Kensington Gardens, London, was commissioned by Queen Victoria in memory of her beloved husband Prince Albert, who died in 1861. Designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the Gothic Revival style, it takes the form of an ornate canopy or pavilion 176 feet tall, in the style of a Gothic ciborium over the high altar of a church, sheltering a statue of the prince facing south. It took over ten years to complete, and the £120,000 cost was met by public subscription.