Fitzgeralds Hotel Donegal

Fitzgerald's Hotel Donegal is the ideal base from which to enjoy Sight-seeing and Touring Holidays of Donegal and the West of Ireland, including Co Sligo, Co Leitrim and Co Fermanagh. The region has a wide range of attractions for visitors of all ages including megalithic burial grounds, ancient Castles, Abbeys, Wildlife Parks and of course the renowned Donegal coastal scenery.

Belleek Pottery - This World famous pottery offers guided tours and has a visitor's centre.

On the banks of the River Erne, on the border between Fermanagh and Donegal, lies Belleek, home of Ireland's oldest pottery. For more than 137 years this little village has been famous for its distinctive parian china. Today Belleek holds a special place in the hearts of china collectors the world over.

The building which, up until 1988, was used to produce Belleek has since been refurbished internally and features a museum, tearoom, video theatre and showroom.

Upon entering the Centre our guests will first see one of the oldest and most prestigious pieces of Belleek ever made. It is called the Belleek International Centre Piece and was displayed at the Paris Exhibition in the year 1900 where it was awarded its fourth gold medal. The International Centre Piece is believed to have been designed by Frederick Slater who came to Belleek in 1893. It is reported to have taken him seven weeks to create the masterpiece. The creation stands 28 inches high and over 16 inches wide at its widest point. The urn shaped vase is exquisitely decorated with flowers (believed to have been made by William Henshall) and Irish Harps and it rests on a scrolled base which also supports three Irish Wolfhounds. Behind the harps, and forming an integral part of the vase, is a beautiful example of pierced work which would have been popular on a number of early Belleek designs.

Each leaf, flower, harp and Irish Wolfhound was created by hand - even every bead and chain link which is is connected to the wolfhound was created and joined by hand.

The International Centre Piece takes centre stage in the Foyer and, displayed with it, are replicas of the medals. It is indeed a truly amazing piece in every way.

When you purchase a piece of Belleek china you become the owner of a truly original piece of Irish craftsmanship, made using materials and techniques handed down from generation to generation. No two pieces are ever the same.

There were three founders, William Armstrong, (technical founder) John Caldwell (provided the land required) Bloomfield and David McBirney (provided the capital required).

Belleek's reputation has been built on product excellence and only Belleek of the very highest quality is ever put on sale. Back in 1857 the pottery's founder John Caldwell Bloomfield declared that any piece with even the slightest flaw should be destroyed. This rule still applies today.

First Period Black Mark 1863-1890
The colour of the mark during this period was predominantly black but other colours were used, amongst them red, blue, orange, green, brown, and pink. Some pieces of Belleek also carry the British Patent Office registation mark which gives the date of regsistration, not the date the piece was manufactured. During this period Belleek also used impressed mark, with the words "BELLEEK,CO. FERMANAGH" or "BELLEEK", or a small impressed mark of a harp or harp and crown. The latter are more usually found on Earthenware pieces.