What are Wedgwood Black Basalt portrait medallions?

Wedgwood Black Basalt portrait medallions are small ceramic portraits modelled in relief or related formats, depicting famous figures from history, politics, literature, science and the arts. Portraits formed an important part of Josiah Wedgwood's eighteenth-century production. Black Basalt was well suited to this work since its fine stoneware body could preserve delicate facial modelling. Subjects ranged from ancient figures to prominent people of Wedgwood's own age. Surviving Black Basalt portraits include politicians, writers and cultural figures.

Size can be surprisingly modest, as a Black Basalt portrait of John Jarvis, Earl St Vincent, in the Metropolitan Museum measures about 9.5 by 7.6 centimetres. Such objects were suited to cabinets and framed displays. Collectors should examine the portrait subject, mould quality, reverse, impressed marks and mounting holes, as old examples may have been set into frames, furniture or jewellery. Identifying the sitter can help trace a model's history, yet the date when a portrait was first modelled should not automatically be treated as the production date of every surviving copy.