Michael Cardew was the first pupil apprenticed to Bernard Leach, and spent three years at his pottery in St Ives. In 1926 he re-established a traditional, rural pottery in Winchcombe, Gloucestershire. Cardew aimed to produce affordable pots for daily use. Made from local red earthenware clay, with galena glazes of yellow and brown, he described them as 'warm, direct and above all, natural'. This mug is characteristic of work produced by Cardew during the Winchcombe period, with a simple wheel-thrown form.