Shaws of Darwen: handcrafting the world’s finest sink

Established with the vision to make the finest handcrafted fireclay sinks in the whole of England, Shaws of Darwen has been in business since 1897, when Arthur Gerald Shaw realised that the spoil from the local collieries contained the highest quality fireclay that could be transformed into something valuable.

Fast forward 125 years and, today, Shaws enjoys a worldwide reputation for their artisan products’ beauty, quality, craftsmanship and practicality.

“Our famous Butler and Belfast sinks have been in continuous production since the reign of Queen Victoria,” the company proudly states.  “We know of Shaws sinks that have been in daily use for more than 100 years, washing dishes and bathing babies.”

A difficult material to work with, fireclay requires immense skill. As Shaws explains: “Because fireclay is more dense than china clay, it must be fired for longer and at a higher temperature. If you get it right, the result is an immensely durable material with a deep, lustrous finish.” But getting it right takes practice and patience – two things Arthur luckily had plenty of. So much so, that once he successfully produced glazed tiles, he progressed to sanitaryware.

Arthur recognised the immense skill necessary to craft the fireclay sinks Shaws is renowned for today, so he encouraged his craftsmen to stamp their name on the base of every sink, as a guarantee of quality once released from its mould.

More than a century later, Shaws sinks are still produced employing the same methods and adhering to the same high standards introduced by Arthur, making it one of the most coveted kitchen accessories in the world.

Shaws of Darwen is locally available at Victoria Albert.
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