Beautifully Decorated 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar

This is a real short post today showing this really nice nineteenth century red earthenware jar that I just acquired from Pennsylvania, although, I am not positive whether this piece was manufactured in Pennsylvania, New England or perhaps even Ontario in Canada. The combination of colors is really spectacular having a bright orange background glaze with two colors of slip covering all sides of the jar. Aesthetically, this is a really wonderful piece of early pottery!

Beautifully Decorated 19th Century Red Earthenware Jar

19th Century Red Earthenware Jar Recently Found in Pennsylvania

Manufactured in Either Pennsylvania or New England

Stands 9 1/4" Tall

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Another View of the Jar

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Another View of the Jar

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Another View of the Jar

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Another View of the Jar

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Another View of the Jar

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My Next Book: South Amesbury's Red Earthenware & Stoneware Production: The 1791-1820 William Pecker Pottery

This post formally announces my next book that will be published by Historic Beverly in Beverly, Massachusetts in 2021, titled South Amesbury's Red Earthenware & Stoneware Production: The 1791-1820 William Pecker Pottery. This new book is the fourth installment and will complete my north of Boston publication series through Historic Beverly. The museum is also considering republishing all four books together on a later date as a collector/book set. The previous publications include:

1) The Beverly Pottery: The Wares of Charles A. Lawrence

2) The Moses B. Paige Company: The Last of the Peabody Potteries

3) Dawn of Independence, the Death of an Industry: The Pottery of Charlestown, Massachusetts

This new book will not only heavily discuss William Pecker's (1758-1820) well-known red earthenware production, but it will also largely focus on his stoneware production, a rather new concept that had been largely overlooked until the 2004 issue of Ceramics in America. Although, there will be a heavy emphasis given to stoneware artifacts recovered in Merrimacport; this type of evidence has not previously been published. The book will also cover eighteenth century production at the Benjamin Bodge (1747-1822) Pottery and the nineteenth century production of the Chase family, both of which operated in South Amesbury/Merrimacport sometime before the American Revolution through the 1880s. There is also mention of the potteries in Newburyport with plenty of photos, along with similar wares made in Peabody, Massachusetts, West Hartford, Connecticut, etc. Overall, this will be my longest book, running over 200 pages. 

Aside from this production, the introduction to the book also analyzes wares made in South Danvers (Peabody), Massachusetts and by the Bayley family in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

South Amesbury's Red Earthenware & Stoneware Production: The 1791-1820 William Pecker Pottery

About the Book: Red earthenware production in South Amesbury (Merrimacport), Massachusetts, dates to the eighteenth century, supplying households in northeastern Massachusetts, southern New Hampshire and probably other spots in New England, with everyday utilitarian wares. This multi-generational family business lasted for more than 100 years, making it one of the longest standing potteries in New England. The most famous of those employed in South Amesbury was William Pecker, who operated a pottery during the circa 1791-1820 period. Although, it is not widely known that Pecker was one of New England's earliest potters to produce red earthenware and stoneware, perhaps only the second business to accomplish this feat in New England behind the Parker Pottery in Charlestown, Massachusetts in the 1740s. This book is the first of its kind to explore South Amesbury's pottery production, the aesthetic appeal of these wars, archaeology and closely examine the stoneware manufactured by William Pecker.

Late 18th and/or 19th Century Red Earthenware Jugs

Manufactured in South Amesbury (Merrimacport), Mass.

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Early 19th Century Stoneware Sherd

Recovered at the Site of the William Pecker Pottery in South Amesbury (Merrimacport), Mass.

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19th Century Southern Alkaline Glazed Stoneware Jar Inscribed With The Initials "JH"

I have owned this nineteenth century southern alkaline glazed stoneware jar with its original lid for more than a decade now; I have previously posted about it, but I have yet to determine its exact origin. I know its southern, and I suspect it was made somewhere along the lines of South Carolina or further south. Although, the glaze and clay color seem to be more in line with what was produced in South Carolina and Alabama than anywhere else, but then again, I am not positive of that either.

Nevertheless, this piece is special because it bear's the initials of either the owner that it was originally manufactured for or perhaps even the potter. Both the jar and lid are inscribed with the initials "JH."

I purchased the jar from a longtime family trust collection in New Hampshire in 2009; the collection dates back to at least the 1940s. There were a number of pieces of pottery owned by the family, but the majority of it was red earthenware and manufactured anywhere from Pennsylvania further north into New England. Any opinions or thoughts on this piece are more than welcome!

Note: The jar also retains an old repair to a piece of the rim that is missing; I do not necessarily like the repair and think the jar would like look better without it, but I have decided to keep the repair seeing that it is quite old and helps tell the story of this piece's history of ownership.

19th Century Southern Alkaline Glazed Stoneware Jar Inscribed With The Initials "JH"

19th Century Southern Alkaline Glazed Stoneware Jar

The Lid And The Jar Are Inscribed With The Initials "JH"

Southern Origin Yet To Be Determined

Probably Circa 1840-1880

Stands 10 1/4" Tall

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View of the Back of the Jar

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View of the Initials "JH" On The Jar And The Lid

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View Of The Base

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Wonderful 19th Century Stoneware Pitcher with Tin Make-Do Repairs

Over the weekend, I found this wonderful nineteenth century stoneware pitcher that I believe is from Baltimore with an incredible tin make-do repaired spout and handle. I have always had the mindset that the rare and most unusual are the best objects to seek out - and I have never really seen a stoneware pitcher quite like this before. I was told that it was previously acquired from an antiques dealer in Vermont.

Wonderful 19th Century Stoneware Pitcher with Tin Make-Do Repairs

19th Century Stoneware Pitcher that I Believe is from Baltimore

Wonderful Tin Make-Do Repaired Spout and Handle

Stands 10 7/8" Tall

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Another View of the Pitcher

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View of the Tin Make-Do Spout

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View of the Tin Make-Do Handle

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An Early 19th Century Connecticut Slip Decorated Red Earthenware Jar

This is an early nineteenth century red earthenware jar owned by Long Island collector and researcher Chris Pickerell, which I believe was manufactured in Connecticut, probably at one of the potteries owned by the Goodwin or Seymour families in West Hartford. Although, what really strikes me about this jar is the use of slip on four sides, where one of the styles shown in the first photo closely resembles some slip decorated plates manufactured in places like Norwalk, Connecticut in the 1800s. Interestingly, these type of plates have also been recovered from nineteenth century contexts in New York City that predate 1840. 

The form of this jar is also a style manufactured in the Hartford and Goshen, Connecticut area; it is manufactured with broad shoulders and then tapers down to a narrower base. I have previously written about similar jars, one from my private collection, as well as a jar owned privately in Rhode Island, along with others that were made at the Hervey Brooks (1779-1873) Pottery in Goshen. 

An Early 19th Century Connecticut Slip Decorated Red Earthenware Jar

Early 19th Century Slip Decorated Red Earthenware Jar

Probably Manufactured in West Hartford, CT

This Style of Slip is Found on Plates Manufactured in Places Like Norwalk, CT

These Type of Plates Have Also Been Recovered in New York City

Stands 9" Tall

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Photo Courtesy: Chris Pickerell

Another View of the Jar

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Photo Courtesy: Chris Pickerell

Another View of the Jar

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Photo Courtesy: Chris Pickerell

Another View of the Jar

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Photo Courtesy: Chris Pickerell

View of the Base

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Photo Courtesy: Chris Pickerell

View of the Interior

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Photo Courtesy: Chris Pickerell

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An Outstanding Red Earthenware Frame with a Reported Provenance in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada

This is an outstanding late nineteenth or early twentieth century painted frame made out of red earthenware, which recently sold in the William and Barbara Leask Collection at Pridham's Auction in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Although, the maker has not been positively identified, this is believed to have been possibly manufactured in Canada, and ideally just an excellent example of folk art. 

The frame came accompanied with a later note reading, "Anna Wuntz Moose Jaw Sask." Moose Jaw is a city in southern Saskatchewan, and there is some speculation whether Anna Wuntz may actually be Anna Wurtz, a Dutch name known in Saskatchewan. Moose Jaw is the fourth largest city in Saskatchewan and it was found in 1882 when the Canada Pacific Railway chose the site for the town.

Interestingly, of all of the American and Canadian red earthenware frames that I have seen through the years in museum and private collections, this is certainly the one that intrigues me the most. The frame is decorated with three types of flowers, two doves and joined hands at the bottom.

Red Earthenware Frame with a Reported Provenance in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada

Late 19th or Early 20th Century Painted Red Earthenware Frame

Measures About 12" Tall and 10" Across

Decorated With Three Types of Flowers, Two Doves and Joined Hands

Retains an Old Note Reading, "Anna Wuntz Moose Jaw Sask."

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Photo Courtesy: Ed Haldorson

View of the Doves

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Photo Courtesy: Ed Haldorson

View of the Joined Hands

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Photo Courtesy: Ed Haldorson

View of One of the Flowers

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Photo Courtesy: Ed Haldorson

Another View of the Frame

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Photo Courtesy: Ed Haldorson

Partial View of the Red Clay

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Photo Courtesy: Ed Haldorson

View of the Back of the Frame

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Photo Courtesy: Ed Haldorson

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A Red Earthenware Shaving Mug in the Collection of the New Bedford Whaling Museum in Massachusetts

The rarity of certain forms from specific makers and industries (or locations) is certainly an appealing concept to collectors and museums today. And even though this piece does show signs of obvious use and wear through this years, this definitely fits into the category of rarity and maker.

This is an eighteenth or early nineteenth century red earthenware shaving mug, which I have always felt was a rare survivor, seeing that I have not seen many red earthenware mugs from southeastern Massachusetts, probably Bristol County. The only other example that I can recall seeing through the years is a similar object in the collection of Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, Massachusetts. Although, this particular piece is owned by the New Bedford Whaling Museum in New Bedford, Massachusetts. The piece does not retain much information about its maker or history of ownership, but it was acquired by the museum in 1944.

Red Earthenware Shaving Mug

18th or Early 19th Century Red Earthenware Shaving Mug

Attributed to Southeastern Mass., Probably Bristol County

Stands 4 5/8" Tall

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Photo Courtesy: New Bedford Whaling Museum

Please Stay Tuned...Much More to Come...