A Very Important Pair of Early-19th Century Red Earthenware Marriage Jars

A very-important pair of southeastern Massachusetts slip-decorated red earthenware marriage jars were published in the January 1974 edition of the 'Magazine Antiques.' Surprisingly, neither of these objects (to my knowledge) have been formally published before in a book or a magazine article. Instead, they are relatively unknown objects today. I have also never seen either of these jars outside of this advertisement, which was placed by Ashley Falls, Massachusetts antique dealers, John Bihler and Henry Coger.

The whereabouts of these jars are also unknown (to me); although, it is believed that they are possibly owned by a museum. I assume they must be tucked away in an American museum's storage facility; however, I would be eager to learn where these jars are kept today if anyone reading this is familiar with their existence.

According to Bihler and Coger, "(This) pair of  slipware decorated marriage jars were made for George and Debby Purinton from Tiverton, Rhode Island, circa 1800." The jars are also decorated with very-unusual birds that were applied in slip.

Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins cites George Purinton in 'Early New England Potters and Their Wares,' "As it is still possible in the small town of Somerset, Massachusetts to locate some of the old pottery dumps (in 1950), it may not be amiss to mention the potters who ran the little shops. 

The last descendant of the Purinton family to practice the potter's art was George S. Purinton (1816-1897), son of George Purinton (1784-1858, who is likely the name written on the jars). He lived in a house formerly owned by one Samuel Purinton that originally stood on Assonet Neck, but was moved down the river over the ice to Pottersville. 

The building was placed on a site west of the spot where the Hanson house now stands and probably about where the Chace-Purinton house had stood before. Mr. Hanson remembers this home of his grandparents. It is reported that George Purinton's kiln was located on the waterfront (which aloud for easy transportation of the red earthenware)."

A genealogy search has revealed that George Purinton was born in Somerset in 1784 to Clark Purinton, Jr. and Sarah Purinton. George married Deborah Purinton in 1808, which likely indicates the year that the jars were made. The couple had one son, George Shove Purinton, who was born in Somerset in 1816. George passed away in 1858 at the age of 74. It is believed that George was a potter for the majority of his life.

There is another marriage jar known (see below) that is also believed to be tied to the Purinton family, which was owned by Falmouth, Massachusetts antique dealers, Hilary and Paulette Nolan. This jar is dated in slip '1812' under one handle, and the the initials 'AP' are found under the other handle. The initials may stand for a daughter, who got married in 1812. The jar is decorated with a bright orange-glaze with floral slip-decoration and splashes of bright-green. This jar was sold when the Nolans sold their collection of red earthenware in the summer of 2004 at Northeast Auctions annual summer Americana sale in Manchester, New Hampshire.

This is a list of the Purinton family members, who are known to have been active in the potter's industry - the family began in Essex County, Massachusetts in the early-to-mid 1700's before they established a few Purinton Pottery kiln sites in Somerset. It should also be noted that the Purinton family manufactured red earthenware (and some stoneware ) into the second-half of the nineteenth-century.

Purinton Pottery of South Danvers and Somerset, Mass.

1) Daniel Purinton (South Danvers and Somerset) – d. 1764

2) Clark Purinton – son of Daniel (Somerset) – b. 1730 d. 1786

3) Clark Purinton Jr. – son of Clark (Somerset) – d. 1817

4) George Purinton – son of Clark Jr. (Somerset) - b. 1784 d. 1858

5) Dexter Purinton - son of George (Somerset) - b. 1811 d. 1880

6) George S. Purinton - son of George (Somerset) –  b. 1816 d. 1897

7) Samuel S. Purinton - son of George (Somerset) – b. 1817
8) David P. Purinton – son of Samuel (Somerset) – b. 1824 d. 1900
9) Charles Otis Purinton - son of Samuel S. (Somerset) - b. 1849

Note: Here is a link to an article that previewed a very-important marriage jar that was made in Whately, Massachusetts, which sold at Crocker Farm in Maryland in 2014. Ultimately, Historic Deerfield acquired this object for the museum's collection in Deerfield, Massachusetts.

Pair of SE Mass Marriage Jars, Circa 1808

Pair of 19th Century Slip-Decorated Red Earthenware Marriage Jars

Likely Made at the Purinton Pottery - Somerset, Mass.

Circa 1808

Photo Courtesy: The Magazine Antiques, January 1974

Another View of the Marriage Jars
This is a Black & White Image
Circa 1808

Photo Courtesy: The Magazine Antiques, January 1974

View of the Description About the Jars

Photo Courtesy: The Magazine Antiques, January 1974

SE Mass Marriage Jar, Circa 1812

(Middle) 19th Century Slip-Decorated Red Earthenware Marriage Jars

Likely Made at the Purinton Pottery - Somerset, Mass.

Circa 1812

Photo Courtesy; Northeast Auctions, August 2004, Portsmouth, NH

This map shows what is meant today when a piece of pottery is attributed to southeastern Massachusetts, where a potter's industry was located in four communities to the west of New Bedford, Massachusetts in the eighteenth and nineteenth-centuries. There was also an important nineteenth-century potter's business found to the east of New Bedford in Barnstable, Massachusetts.

Map of Southeastern Massachusetts

Map Shows the Pottery Industries that Surrounded New Bedford, Mass.

The Purinton Pottery was Located in Somerset, Mass (3)

Photo Courtesy: Google Maps

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