The Rameking

Worldwide Headquarters of the Australian Studio Art Ramekin, (and a few others) that piece of Australiana that has almost disappeared from our lives and tables. How many of you Baby Boomers have sat in front of a warm fire in winter, eating tinned spaghetti from a ramekin? In the period between the World Wars, and in the decades after, many famous artists made ramekins. They continued until cheap imports and copies almost killed them off in the 1970s. See them here in all their faded glory.

Ramekin is thought to come from a Dutch word for "toast" or the German for "little cream."

Name

Ramekin

Variant

Ramequin, Ramekin dish.

Pronounced

(ram′ə kin)[RAM-ih-kihn]ræməkin

Function

English Noun
Plural

Ramekins

Hypernym

A type of dish

Purpose

Cooking

Etymology

French Ramequin from Low German ramken, diminutive of cream, circa 1706. middle Dutch rammeken (cheese dish) dialect variant of rom (cream), similar to old English ream and German rahm. Ancient French cookbooks refer to ramekins as being garnished fried bread.

Meaning

1. A food mixture, (casserole) specifically a preparation of cheese, especially with breadcrumbs and/or eggs or unsweetened pastry baked on a mould or shell.

2. With a typical volume of 50-250 ml (2-8 oz), it is a small fireproof glass or earthenware individual dish similar in size and shape to a cup, or mould used for cooking or baking and serving sweet or savoury foods.

3. Formerly the name given to toasted cheese; now tarts filled with cream cheese.

4. A young child usually between the ages of 3 months and 11 years exhibiting a compulsion to force or "ram" their head into various objects and structures.

These days, a ramekin is generally regarded as a small single serve heatproof serving bowl used in the preparation or serving of various food dishes, designed to be put into hot ovens and to withstand high temperatures. They were originally made of ceramics but have also been made of glass or porcelain, commonly in a round shape with an angled exterior ridged surface. Ramekins have more lately been standardized to a size with a typical volume of 50-250 ml (2-8 ounce) and are now used for serving a variety of sweet and savoury foods, both entrée and desert.

They are also an attractive addition to the table for serving nuts,dips and other snacks. Because they are designed to hold a serving for just one person, they are usually sold in sets of four, six, or eight. Ramekins now are solid white, round, with a fluted texture covering the outside, and a small lip. Please bear in mind that whatever you ask for them on Internet auction sites, someone is still getting the same thing in an op shop for peanuts.

However, there are hundreds of decorative ramekins that came in a variety of shapes and sizes. They came in countless colours and finishes and many were made by our leading artists and ceramicists. My collection has ramekins with One handle only, fixed to the body at one point only. If it has no handle, it is a bowl. If it has two, it is a casserole dish. But the glory day of the Australian Studio Art ramekin is well and truly over. See some here, ask questions or leave answers.

P.S. Remember, just as real men don't eat quiche, real ramekins don't have lids or two handles. Also remember, two handles makes it a casserole dish. Also, please note If it aint got a handle, it's just a bowl.
P.P.S. To all you cretins who advertise your ramekins by associating them with "Eames" or "Eames Era". Get your hand off it, you are not kidding anyone. The Eames people have told me that they never made ramekins.
P.P.P.s To all the illiterates out there in cyberspace, just as there is no "I" in team, there is no "G" in Ramekin. I am the Rameking, they are ramekins.
If you have a set of Grandma's ramekins at the back of a kitchen cupboard, have a look through the site, maybe you will identify them. Thank-you for looking.
There are many of you out there that have knowledge of Australian pottery. Please let me know if you have anything that I can add to the notes. It is important to get the information recorded. You probably know something that nobody else does.
Please note that while your comments are most welcome, any that contain a link to another site will no longer be published.

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Terra Ceramics

Designer	Bernhard Fiegel
Maker	Terra Ceramics
Marks	Incised initials “TC” to base
Material	Slip
Description	Abstract fish shaped dish with flat tab handle. Shallow bowl with oval footring. Spur marks to base, green gloss glaze to entire body.
Condition	Very Good, no chips, cracks or crazing
Number	No number
Production Date	!980s
Width at rim	118mm
Width at Base	65mm
Depth	40mm
Length (with handle)	195mm
Weight	190gm
Volume	325ml
Acquisition	Purchase Australian Pottery at Bemboka November 2012
Rameking Reference Number	TEC 001-006

Designer	Bernard Fiegel
Maker	Terra Ceramics
Marks	Gold and Black Adhesive label to centre of bowl interior “Terra Ceramics Ovenproof” around outside with “Terra”vertically to right of interior and outline of vase to left with large letter “T” separating them.
Material	Glazed white slip
Description	Gloss brown glazed bowl with moulded stem handle to top edge of exterior. Unglazed foot ring. Darker glaze to rim.
Condition	Very Good
Number	No Number
Production Date	1980-81
Width at rim	130mm
Width at Base	62mm
Depth	53mm
Length (with handle)	190mm
Weight	275gm
Volume	375ml
Acquisition	Naomi Fiegel 8^th January 2014
Rameking Reference Number	TCE 001-006

Designer	Bernard Fiegel
Maker	Terra Ceramics
Marks	Incised TC to base
Material	Glazed blue slip
Description	Called "Bermagui Blue" by Bernard, one piece gloss blue glazed to interior and exterior bowl with slightly curled moulded tab handle to top edge of exterior.
Condition	Very Good, spur marks to interior of foot ring
Number	No Number
Production Date	1980-81
Width at rim	140mm
Width at Base	75mm
Depth	40mm
Length (with handle)	165mm
Weight	210gm
Volume	325ml
Acquisition	Naomi Fiegel 12^th February 2014
Rameking Reference Number	TCE 006-012

Bernhard Fiegel was born in Germany on the 1^st January 1919. He arrived in Darwin by air, 8^th November 1939 as a stateless person. Moving to Paddington, Sydney, where he enlisted for service in Australia during World War 2 having become an Australian citizen in October 1945. A Ceramicist, he began teaching pottery at Ingleburn in the Australian Convalescent Depot, working with Guy Boyd, after Boyd had worked as an Army cartographer with John Perceval. Fiegel was a Dutch-trained potter and ceramicist and was a Jewish immigrant whose family had fled Germany at the beginning of WW2.

Thanks to Bernard's daughter Naomi for this photograph of him.

In 1946, following his discharge, he set up a ceramics business in Ashfield, Sydney, (he lived at 81 Bland Street Ashfield with Erna Fiegel his mother) who helped as a factory hand) later moving to Greenacre. Bernhard was previously married to Marianne Leonie Fiegel, but was divorced in March 1952. He later married Jean May Stocker Gunn. He had two children, Paul and Naomi. Marianne went into nursing. He produced a variety of ceramic wares using the brand Terra Ceramics”. Terama was the name of a floral pattern. He continued production until the early 1980s. These fish shape ramekins are an example of the elegant simplicity of his later work. Fish shaped pottery was popular in Australia during the 1950s and 60s, more so in the state of New South Wales, with Diana pottery at Marrickville producing many ramekins with a fish design.

In 1981 Bernhard died, but twelve months earlier he had started negotiations with Trugrit Manufacturing Ltd to have his product made in NZ under licence. A new company "Terra Ceramics NZ" was formed using the same raw materials and clay body. They then shipped all of their moulds and other machinery over to Aukland in containers. This new company was run by Mr Ernie Cooper, a qualified Ceramist.

The new company was located at 18 Copsey Place, Rosebank Rd, Avondale, Auckland. H.Hemara, now the elder statesman of New Zealand pottery was working there when the crates containing the moulds were opened in New Zealand. Moulds for Terra were later produced at the Henderson pottery. Initially, the company used the same stickers but later changed them to read Terra Ceramics, New Zealand. Hemara is still making pottery along with his son Paul. So is Terra Ceramics New Zealand.

Thanks to Bernard's daughter Naomi for this photograph of a display of Terra Ceramics 1953..

4 comments:

UnknownMay 13, 2016 at 8:45 PM
Just an aside Rameking ... I think that photo of the exhibition was taken by Jack Hickson at Anthony Hordern's on August 15, 1955. There are another 12 photos here: http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/38825551?q&sort=holdings+desc&_=1463195891127&versionId=51555676

It may be that Naomi had the date incorrect or that the State Library is in error. Or am I wrong?
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UnknownMay 13, 2016 at 8:46 PM
Thanks for a wonderful and enlightening post on TERRA CERAMICS and BERNHARD FIEGEL !!!!
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Replies
UnknownDecember 29, 2016 at 4:41 PM
I have come up with an address for the pottery in Greenacre : The corner Oleander St and Roberts Rd Chullora. The phone number gave it away: Tel. UA3641. An Ashfield number but from 1954 the same number was used to advertise for employees at the new address : "BOY Wanted for Art Pottery Int work gd cond Oleander St Cnr Roberts Rd Chullora UA3641" ( SMH - Saturday 2 October 1954 p 36 ).
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Replies
AnonymousOctober 11, 2023 at 10:06 PM
Hi Rameking
Thank you for the info on Terra Ceramics. I just acquired an elegant egg cup with its Terra Ceramics still on the base. It was in an auction lot of Martin Boyd bits and pieces. It has hand painted leaves on it in various colours.
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Origin of the Australian Art Studio Ramekin

In the 19th Century, Ramequin Cases began to be used in cooking. These were paper cups, similar to those used for cupcakes or muffins. As time passed, people began to make them from clay and the spelling mostly changed from Ramequin to Ramekin. Ramequin still holds out in a few places, mainly in parts of the USA. The heyday of the Australian ramekin began in the 1930s.

Australian Art Studio pottery grew out of the 19th Century Arts and Crafts Movement. Following the upheaval of the First World War, potters found that many people still wanted hand made homewares. In Australia, many potters opened studios to meet this demand which intensified after the Second World War when returned ex services people set up their homes. It is the fallout from this ageing group that is now finding it’s way onto the market. Most of them may never be valuable, it is only their intrinsic value,but after another 100 years, who knows?

The Government, still in austerity mode encouraged manufacture of practical pottery post World War 2, by placing a higher tax on decorative wares, leading to potteriesmaking items that were decorative but had a practical use,thus avoiding the tax. This explains the absence of figurines that were the mainstay of many English potteries, and the proliferation of things like ramekins and vases.

Retraining programmes for returned and wounded soldiers at the end of the First and Second World Wars provided a workforce for the many potteries that flourished in Australia at the time. After the First World War, Bendigo Pottery needed a trained workforce to help make the flood of bricks for the housing in Melbourne. Towards the end of the Second, Guy Boyd worked at the Rehabilitation Hospital at Ingleburn, New South Wales, teaching pottery

Before take away food and plastics came to dominate the market, ceramics were used for a much wider range of products. The population explosion created by the Australian gold rush resulted in an increased demand for all kinds of locally manufactured goods. As the market diversified so too did the pottery, from commercial packaging to utility kitchenware. For the larger pottery’s, domestic items were, however, always a sideline to the main business of serving the building trade. For some, smaller potteries and individual potters, ramekins were the main income producer.

In 1957 the Australia-Japan Agreement on Commerce negotiated by Australian Trade Minister, John 'Black Jack' McEwan dealt a major blow to commercial potteries. This agreement opened the doors for mass- produced cheap Japanese ceramics to flood the Australian market. Many local commercial potteries were forced out of business by this competition, but a few managed to survive.

There are also the untold stories of some Eastern European migrants fleeing persecution who made a new life in post war Australia, thanks largely to ramekins. Because they made homewares and not art sculpture, their stories have not been adequately told. In some cases, this is the only place you will find part of their stories.

To help calculate the relative cost of these ramekins, I have here are a couple of items to compare the average weekly earnings for a man in Australia for the decades during which ramekins were popular; In 1940, it was $9.60, in 1950 it was $11.50. To convert to the old currency, divide by two.

Please Note

Comments on this blog are moderated BEFORE they appear on the site, and this takes time. There is often a delay between a comment being posted and it being approved. If you do not wish to have your comment posted, I will not post it.

The photographs form part of the description. Due to the light, my photos may show slight variances in colour and some shadows, distortions, reflections and highlights that should not be there. Also different computers and monitor settings will affect colours. My ramekins are all washed in warm water with mild detergent as this identifies any crazing or cracks that are very faint, or invisible to the naked eye. This ensures that the descriptions are more accurate.

Modern Ramekins

Ramekins are one of the few baking dishes that actually have their own name, setting them apart from generic sounding “cake pans” and “baking dishes.” Modern ramekins are small, cylindrical dishes that are used for baking individually sized dishes. They are ideal for baking small soufflés, as their straight sides make it easy for an egg white-based souffle mixture to rise up the sides of the dish and gain a lot of height, as well as for baking individual desserts, since they offer built-in portion control. Use them for little pudding cakes and baked egg-cups, and also for chilled desserts, such as panna cotta and chocolate mousse.

Ramekins can be made out of any heat-proof material; most modern ones are often made out of porcelain, pyrex or something similar. They can come in any size, but are most often found in 4-, 6- or 8-ounce volumes. Some will have very shallow sides, but most have a rise of about an inch or so, depending on the size of the dish itself.

Their small size actually makes them useful for applications outside of the oven. For instance, they’re often used when a cook is doing preparation work in the kitchen, separating chopped ingredients into individual dishes to be used at a later time. They’re also a nice way to present side servings of dressings, sauces and dips.

There are a small number of people who refer to ramekins as “pipkins”. I do not. Yes, there are similarities, but historically, a pipkin is a small earthenware or metal cooking pot used for cooking over direct heat. They had a tripod moulded into the base to stand clear of the fire. Examples of Romano-British pipkins are not uncommon. Late medieval and postmedieval pipkins had a hollow handle in order to insert a stick in it for manipulation. See the “Diana” ramekins for a recent homage to this. Many more recent ones have a spout at a right angle to the handle.

To me a ramekin without a handle is just a bowl or a dish.

It's simple really.

No handle-it's a bowl or a dish

One handle-it's a Ramekin

Two Handles-it's a Casserole dish

Copyright

Most of the images on this site are of my collection as are the comments. Other images and comments on this site are reproduced for the purposes of your information and interest only. I would be grateful for any information concerning Copyright and I will withdraw any items so described immediately on Copyright holder's request.

Please leave any other comments regarding anything on this blog. In the interests of accuracy, I will be pleased to have any information or comments you may have. There are many older people out there that have been involved in the Australian pottery world of the fifties and sixties. Get those arthritic fingers moving and put that knowledge out there. When you go, it goes with you.

Disclaimer

All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. The facts, figures, reviews, records, statistics, and other data presented on this blog is for suggestion and information purposes only. The Rameking is not responsible for any incorrect or incomplete information. The Rameking does not take responsibility for any user-reviews of websites inside its resource and reserves the right to keep or remove those. It is highly recommended that you review all the data for accuracy.

Name	Ramekin
Variant	Ramequin, Ramekin dish.
Pronounced	(ram′ə kin)[RAM-ih-kihn]ræməkin
Function	English Noun
Plural	Ramekins
Hypernym	A type of dish
Purpose	Cooking
Etymology	French Ramequin from Low German ramken, diminutive of cream, circa 1706. middle Dutch rammeken (cheese dish) dialect variant of rom (cream), similar to old English ream and German rahm. Ancient French cookbooks refer to ramekins as being garnished fried bread.
Meaning	1. A food mixture, (casserole) specifically a preparation of cheese, especially with breadcrumbs and/or eggs or unsweetened pastry baked on a mould or shell. 2. With a typical volume of 50-250 ml (2-8 oz), it is a small fireproof glass or earthenware individual dish similar in size and shape to a cup, or mould used for cooking or baking and serving sweet or savoury foods. 3. Formerly the name given to toasted cheese; now tarts filled with cream cheese. 4. A young child usually between the ages of 3 months and 11 years exhibiting a compulsion to force or "ram" their head into various objects and structures.