EarlyAmericanCeramics.com: An Interesting Red Earthenware Pot Discovered Today in Essex, Massachusetts

Sunday, August 16, 2015

An Interesting Red Earthenware Pot Discovered Today in Essex, Massachusetts

While out picking this afternoon in Essex, Massachusetts - I came across a utilitarian red earthenware crock in a junk shop. The dealer told me it was found in a local home. Visually, the pot is nothing special. It's a pot that was used in the kitchen to prepare food. It's as simple as that.

In the case of this pot, the potter had no desire to make this object appear anymore than it was intended to be used for - and, the person who used it, probably purchased it with the intent that it was going to be used as an everyday object in the kitchen.

What really caught my eye about this object is how black the exterior appears - there's no doubt that his pot has been used. I don't believe I have ever seen a pot this blackened on the exterior before; although, the interior glaze has no issues. It's merely speculation (on my behalf) for what this pot was used for, but I believe it may have been used for cooking or heating a liquid rather than baking food. The interior glaze is too clean to believe it was used for baking; although, it would make sense if it was used for a liquid seeing how clean the interior remains today. The blackened exterior was likely caused from its constant use over an open flame day-after-day.

I have seen similar formed red earthenware crocks in a late-eighteenth-century archaeological context at the Narbonne House in Salem, Massachusetts. Those pots were uncovered from privies in the backyard of the home which was a middle-class occupancy located on Salem's waterfront. All of those pots are believed to be examples of locally produced pottery.

Personally, I believe the crock that I found today is an eighteenth-century product that was manufactured at one of the potteries in Peabody (formerly South Danvers), Massachusetts or elsewhere in Essex County, Massachusetts. The interior glaze conforms with glazes that are found on eighteenth-century products properly attributed to Peabody today.

Aesthetically, red earthenware is really a beautiful craft that was accomplished by urban and country craftsmen, alike - and, forms and colors are usually the standout features that collectors and museums cherish most today. However, the stories that this pot could tell fascinate me equally. Imagine how this pot was used over the years - think about the conversations it may have witnessed. This history can be seen today by the overly-blackened exterior. For this reason, I could not let this pot remain in this shop for only $15.