The
Wedgwood Memorial Institute in Queen Street,
Burslem is an example of a Grade II Listed
Building. It was built as a memorial to Josiah
Wedgwood and housed a school of art, museum,
lecture theatre, reading room and library. The
foundation stone was laid by the Chancellor of
the Exchequer, William Gladstone in 1863 and
later opened in 1869.
The street front of the building has elaborate
decoration, mainly in the Venetian Gothic
style. It has two storeys, the upper having
arches containing terracotta figures
representing months of the year. Above these
figures are mosaics depicting the signs of the
Zodiac. Between the storeys is a set of ten
relief panels displaying processes in the
pottery industry. The statue of Josiah
Wedgwood was completed in 1873 and stands
above the highly decorated central doorway.
