I have very-little doubt that the pan of discussion is an eighteenth-century product; however, the bigger question (to me) revolves around the idea, that if this pan was made in the 1700's, then, where was it made. The distinct manner in-which the slip was applied seems like it could be an attributable characteristic today. I'm not necessarily saying that it could be attributed to a specific potter or a potter's business; although, I would like to believe that this somewhat unique or peculiar style could be attributed to a certain area today. It's not a style of slip that is regularly seen today. This is a rare decorated object.
For a period reference or time-frame: I believe this pan could date in the 1760-1790 era. Personally, I believe this is a Massachusetts-made product, but it seems difficult to say exactly where it was made seeing that this is a style that is not regularly found in any of the major eighteenth-century potter's industries or major businesses (that I can see) in places like Essex County, Charlestown, Dedham, Abington, Quincy or southeastern Massachusetts.
Probably 18th Century Slip Decorated New England-Made Red Earthenware Pan
Stands 2 1/2" Tall
Measures 15" in Diameter
Earl Curry Collection
Photo Courtesy: Willis Henry Auctions - Marshfield, MA
View of the Pan as it Sat During the Auction Preview on Saturday August 1, 2014
While I was busy painting my house today, it dawned on me, that I have seen a related swirl decoration in slip, also on a pan, demonstrated on red earthenware sherds that I have recovered along the Bass River in Danversport, Massachusetts. This was a river that saw a great-amount of trash deposited into it in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth-centuries located just north of Boston.
Every time I visit this river (at low tide), I find more evidence of the red earthenware that was once used by local homes in this area. Danversport is part of Essex County, Massachusetts, which saw dozens of potters employed in the local potter's industry in the 1700's. The area includes Salem and Peabody (formerly South Danvers), Massachusetts.
It's interesting to note that this area is really not known for its use of slip today - in-fact, it is believed that aside from one potter's business in the eighteenth-century (Kettle or Kettel family) that very-little slip was ever used in the Peabody and Salem-areas in the 1700's or the 1800's. Individually, this is an idea that I challenge today, even-though, this idea is well-published. I will admit that I have collected a small collection of sherds with this same swirl decoration in slip on the Bass River. All of the examples that I have collected are the remains of pans, too.
Definitively, I am not able to reveal this sherd's true origin, but I am truly interested in knowing whether an Essex County (Peabody versus Salem) potter is responsible for the following sherd and the plate of discussion; none-the-less, I do find it rather suspicious that sherds with this swirl decoration have been discovered in a river that leads to Salem and eventually the Atlantic Ocean - and, it is also a body of water where local trash was deposited in the eighteenth-century. My question: could the pan that sold at Willis Henry's auction last weekend, ultimately, be a rare survivor of red earthenware decorated with slip that was once (rarely?) produced in Essex County in the 1700's? I will leave the comparison of the sherd and the pan up to you; although, I do see some resemblance between the two.
Bass River - Danversport, MA
Bass River - Danversport, MA
Bass River - Danversport, MA
Red Earthenware Sherd with Swirl Slip Decoration Recovered on the Bass River in Danversport, MA
This River is Where Trash was Deposited in the 1700's and the 1800's
The Manner of the Slip Slightly Resembles the Swirled Slip Seen on the Pan Above
I Have Found a Small Collection of These Type Sherds on the Bass River
Each Sherd is the Remains of a Pan
Another View of the Sherd
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