I have been intrigued with this late nineteenth century earthenware face jug for a few years now; I was first introduced to it when it was owned by Brooklyn, New York antiques dealer Steven Powers. The jug is attributed to Ontario about 1880, and more recently sold through Crocker Farm in Sparks, Maryland in the Spring of 2020. The Zipps described it as, "a glaze treatment that is among the more sophisticated that we have seen in North American earthenware, reminiscent of a style employed by Pennsylvania master potter, John Bell (1800-1880). The object's applied face creates an important work of folk expression, which transcends the ceramic medium. The jug is among the most brilliantly-glazed North American face vessels that we are aware of."
Interestingly, this face jug was previously owned by Ron Korman, Robert Girouard and Peter Brams. I asked Ron Korman of Muleskinner Antiques in Williamsville, New York a few days ago where he found it, but he could not remember. My guess is that it was found in the western New York and Ontario area.
Among the reasons this piece is believed to have been made in Ontario is the distinct color of the white earthenware clay, a type of clay rarely found with utilitarian production in America, outside of factory made wares in places like Bennington, Vermont, Boston, New Jersey, the Midwest and other locations. This is a type of clay that was used much more prominently by utilitarian potters in Canada.
I have also included pictures of a second earthenware face jug also thought to have been manufactured in Ontario in the late 1800s. The style of the glaze found on the top half of this jug is the same color as that used on the piece of discussion. However, this piece reveals a bearded white man, perhaps representing an historical or political figure.
Unfortunately, I am unable at this time to provide more information about where exactly these pieces were made and whether or not it was a potter who was trained and later relocated from the Pennsylvania or the Shenandoah Valley area. Nonetheless, I think these are rather important pieces of nineteenth century North American folk pottery.
Late 19th Century Earthenware Face Jugs
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