'Quick Cooker' or ceramic pudding basin

Food preparation was labour intensive during the Victorian period as all foods were unprocessed and had to be prepared daily. 'Quick cookers', or ceramic pudding basins, were widely used to make puddings.  This one was made by Grimwade Brothers Limited in London and has instructions for use together with details of their other products that were available. Grimwade Brothers was founded by Leonard Lumsden Grimwade in Stoke-on-Trent in 1885. He was soon joined in the business by his older brother, Sidney Richard, another potter. By 1890, new showrooms had been purchased in Stoke-on-Trent and London, and in 1906 Grimwades Limited was operating from four factories in the Potteries. In 1913, King George V and Queen Mary visited the Potteries and the brothers issued a catalogue to commemorate the event. The Queen purchased a tea set and was presented with a gift of a Mecca Foot Warmer, an oval ceramic hot water bottle. Soon after, a prestigious royal warrant was bestowed on the Grimwades. Grimwade Brothers Limited adopted the trade name 'Royal Winton' after a series of successful advertisements in potter's magazines in the late 1920s.