Visit to The Allen Gallery, Alton

Situated in the historic market town of Alton, the Allen Gallery is an intimate setting for one of the south’s most outstanding collections of ceramics. The gallery hosts an impressive and varied selection of pottery, porcelain and tiles dating from 1250 to the present day.

The gallery displays a wide range of ceramics, from Wedgwood and English Delftware to unique studio pottery. Of the 3,000 pieces currently on show, the majority are drawn from around the UK, but they sit alongside Eastern Asian and continental wares which have historically influenced the ceramics industry in this country.

Pieces by some of the best-known names in ceramics and sculpture can be seen, including Items by Lucie Rie, and the tin-glazed earthenware collection, containing examples of English and European work, is of international importance. The gallery is also home to a range of sculptures, with a Parian ware bust of Queen Victoria and a bronze sculpture of a woman known as ‘Dolores’ by the American sculptor, Jacob Epstein.

Members may also like to visit the Curtis Museum nearby which is home to one of the finest local history collections in Hampshire.

Another recommendation is a visit to Jane Austen’s house at Chawton, (GU34 1SD), this year being the 200^th anniversary of her death in 1825. 

This is where she wrote, revised and published all six of her novels and where she lived for the last eight years of her life. It is essential to book in advance, viaenquiries@janeaustens.house