EarlyAmericanCeramics.com: A 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Acquired Yesterday that Matches an Object Owned by Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Saturday, July 15, 2017

A 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Acquired Yesterday that Matches an Object Owned by Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

This is a nineteenth century red earthenware jar that I acquired yesterday in a trade, where I gave up a few pieces of glass from a small collection that I had accumulated over the years. The jar had previously been owned in a longtime New Hampshire collection.

I have not been able to determine a maker for this object; although, I do feel it is special. I have only seen this exact form and decoration on a few objects, all of which have been attributed to Connecticut.

I would say that the first time I saw this form was when I first read Cape Cod antique dealer, Brian Cullity's 1991 exhibit catalog from the Heritage Plantation of Sandwich, Massachusetts, titled, 'Slipped and Glazed: Regional American Redware.'

A matching object is pictured in the catalog that is undoubtedly from the same potter's business, which is attributed to Connecticut. It was also loaned to the exhibit by Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where it was originally acquired by Strawbery Banke from renowned New Hampshire antiques dealer, Roger Bacon in the early-1970s.

According to Cullity, "The spectacular nature of this form and decoration would imply that it was a special piece. The decoration has been applied with extra care and the glaze is especially thick - yielding a high gloss finish. The yellow spots appear to be accidental splashes of slip."

Note: The jar that I acquired yesterday also exhibits accidental splashes of slip, which suggest that this jar was manufactured at a potter's business that regularly worked with slip. I also want to mention that the clay, glaze and footed base also remind me of objects that were produced in Peabody, Massachusetts in the nineteenth century.

Jar Acquired Yesterday