EarlyAmericanCeramics.com: Red Earthenware and Stoneware Sells Well at Maple Leaf Auctions Annual Spring Sale in Ontario

Sunday, May 13, 2018

Red Earthenware and Stoneware Sells Well at Maple Leaf Auctions Annual Spring Sale in Ontario

Maple Leaf Auctions in Carleton Place, Ontario just wrapped up its annual spring auction, which included examples of Canadian-made red earthenware, blue-decorated stoneware, Ontario ginger beer stoneware bottles, eastern Canadian ginger beer stoneware bottles, glass and some electric objects.

Overall, the auction results appear to have been strong with several examples of red earthenware and stoneware eclipsing the thousand dollar mark. Several pitchers, a jar and a miniature butter churn with its original lid led the way for the red earthenware aspect of the sale - and, stoneware was also strong with a circa 1860s jug from Quebec decorated with a cobalt flower that sold for $3,000 and a jug from Toronto also decorated with cobalt flowers that sold for $2,300.

The rarest object in the sale was likely a nineteenth century red earthenware jar with a slip-decorated interior from St. John, New Brunswick; whereas, this type of jar is regularly found in northern New England and eastern Canada today. But many of those objects were also made in Nova Scotia. However, this jar was stamped by the manufacturer, which is considered an extremely rare mark to find today.

According to Maple Leaf Auctions auctioneer, Scott Wallace, "Joseph White emigrated from Bristol, England with his sons in 1864 to take over operation of a pottery in St. John, New Brunswick. While he lived only four years, dying in 1870, he established a pottery dynasty in the province. The family of Foley potters are related.

This one gallon red earthenware cream crock is marked 'J. White & Son, Potters, St. John NB.' This mark is extremely rare. In fact, this is the first and only example I have seen or heard of.

White and his sons may have produced a fair amount of ware, but they clearly did not mark many pieces. Without the maker's mark, one would assume this was an ordinary piece of Nova Scotia-made red earthenware. This one shows the same type of pottery was made in New Brunswick.

Joseph White was also famous back in England for his glaze making. He would have to adapt his glaze to work with the local clay in Canada."

Note: Here is a link to the auction catalog for Maple Leaf Auctions Spring 2018 sale in Ontario - a number of examples of Canadian-made red earthenware and stoneware are listed. This auction house's catalogs are helpful, especially in the United States, where Ontario/Canadian-made pottery can be misinterpreted for American production.

RW001