EarlyAmericanCeramics.com: A Scottish Earthenware Jug that Retains an Old Label from Salem, Massachusetts

Thursday, June 21, 2018

A Scottish Earthenware Jug that Retains an Old Label from Salem, Massachusetts

Yesterday, I posted an article about a circa 1775-1810 English "China glaze" pearlware coffee pot, which I discovered last weekend with my niece, Alexis inside a small shop near the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire. I had written that similar decorated examples were recovered by archaeologists in the twentieth century from a privy at the Narbonne House in Salem, Massachusetts.

The fact that this type of decoration was apparently available in Salem during this period is fascinating considering the huge China Trade market that Salem is known for today - and, essentially, the English production was copying the Chinese wares that were shipped throughout Europe and America. But it appears there was a demand for both brands, which may have catered to different income levels and households in Salem in the eighteenth and early-nineteenth century.

However, another brand of European household pottery that seems to have been available in Salem in the early-nineteenth century is yellow transfer printed brown earthenware manufactured in Scotland, also known as "Portobello ware" from Portobello, Scotland. This type of production is somewhat rare to find today, and characterized by a number of patterns that include Chinese and Roman scenes.

This particular jug was found a few years ago, while I picked my way through the antique fields in Brimfield, Massachusetts. The dealer told me that he had recently acquired it from a small auction in Pennsylvania just before he traveled north to setup at Brimfield. Although the jug itself is not the reason I purchased this object; instead, my interest was a result of an old nineteenth century merchant label adhered to the base.

The label reads "Richard Hardy, / Dealer in / New and Second-Hand / FURNITURE / Horse-Furnishing Goods, / etc., etc. / SALEM, MASS. / Cost / Price."

Richard Hardy seems to have been a nineteenth century merchant in Salem - in fact, he's listed in the 1879 Salem City Directly as a furniture dealer at 4 Lafayette Street with a house nearby in Beverly, Massachusetts. He's also listed in the 1877 City Directly as a cabinet maker at 10 Front Street.

Interestingly, Historic New England owns a nineteenth century trade card that reads, "RICHARD HARDY / Dealer in / New and Second Hand Furniture / Bedding, etc. Antique Furniture Bought and Sold. / Repairing in all its branches done neatly and with despatch / Upholstering of all kinds done to order. / No. 4 LAFAYETTE STREET / SALEM, MASS."

Scottish Transfer Printed Earthenware Jug