Wakefield Museums and Castles

Naomi Aderonke is a local ceramicist with a passion for history. She has recreated Cistercian ware, a style of pottery made in medieval Wakefield. 

In the middle ages Cistercian ware was made in Potovens (pot ovens) in Wrenthorpe. Initially, they supplied practical bowls and cups to Cistercian monks in their abbeys. The abbeys closed in 1540.

However, the pots were so popular in Wakefield that they kept making them. In the 1600s, they started also decorating the pots in coloured slip. 

Naomi lives near the site of the Wrenthorpe pottery kilns. She has researched the medieval techniques and style to recreate examples from our collections. Her miniature replicas feature Yorkshire iconography like rhubarb and Pontefract cakes.

This type of cup is called a ‘tyg’. It was a later Cistercian ware style from around the 1700s. A tyg was a mug with multiple handles. This allowed people to share and pass around a drink more easily.

Naomi’s work is currently on display with original Cistercian ware at Wakefield Museum.