NEN Gallery

The 19th century saw the widespread use of the stoneware hot water bottle, the most familiar type having the stopper placed centrally on top of a loaf-shaped bottle.
It was and is difficult to make a ceramic screw fit well enough into a ceramic thread to remain water tight, so it was better to put the stopper on the top of the bottle. The bottles had flat bottoms to prevent them from rolling over.
At the turn-of-the-century a rubber washer was introduced, this made all the difference and was used to make a porcelain hot water bottle that could be used lying on its side but with some risk.