Parian ware bust of George Stephenson, made by Wedgwood, Stoke-on-Trent.

George Stephenson used experimental techniques to create the Liverpool and Manchester Railway.

His background, working for coalmines, gave him the skills to face the challenge.

Stephenson didn’t go to school and didn’t learn to read or write until the age of eighteen. Despite this, he became one of the leading engineers of his time. His success was celebrated with the production of busts like this one.