SC - Tudor Greenware - lead poisoning?

[HICKS, MELISSA]

Greetings all,

I ma not sure this is relevant here or if I should find a potters list ...

I've just started research into Tudor Greenware - a form of pottery made in
England (Surrey mainly) in the 15th Century.  From what I can understand (I
am *just* starting to research this) the bowls, goblets and pitchers/jugs
are formed from a pale clay, fired and then partially covered with a green
glaze.  Usually only the top 1/3 to 1/2 of the item was covered with the
green glaze, so we end up with a pretty green and white contrast.

However I was taught yesterday that lead glazes (which were the usual means
of creating a green glaze) made with raw materials (lead, silica etc.) were
dangerous as the lead leeched out during the glaze firing process.  But, if
the raw glaze elements were fired together first to form a glass and then
ground and added to water and a binder and then used to form the glaze
(process is called frittering), then the tableware would be safe.

Is there any evidence that 15th Century English would know about lead
poisoning, or know how to stop it happening?  I assumed not, as a form of
lead powder was used in face powder in late 16th Century England, but I
thought I should ask anyway.

Has anyone looked into this form of pottery?  All extant pieces seem to be
food related, bowls, cups, goblets and pitchers/jugs with the except of one
incredibly beautiful "bleeding cup".

I'll have a look on the Web tonight to see if I can find any pictures of
extant pieces, so you can see the style I am talking about.

Regards

Meliora.