According to an academic thesis written by Mary Jean Crawford for the University of North Carolina in 1962, titled, Jugtown Pottery: History and Design, “When the present Jugtown first began operations in 1917, its output was almost exclusively the traditional and utilitarian shapes. But some years later, Tiffany Studios in New York, a customer of Jugtown Pottery, suggested that they make some decorative pieces.”
Chinese pottery found in museums and libraries in New York City, especially the Metropolitan Museum of Art, served as inspiration, with an emphasis towards pottery made during the Han, Tang and Sung dynasties. Artist Jacques Busbee (1870-1947) and Jugtown potter Ben Owen (1904-1983) brought these unfamiliar shapes to North Carolina, and ancient pottery made in China, Persia and Korea provided them with inspiration.
Crawford additionally says, “The Chinese blue or blue-green glaze was Jugtown’s most prized glaze and, according to one authority, some of the best pieces of Jugtown Pottery, usually the Chinese translations, had the Chinese blue glaze. Mr Busbee mixed this glaze, and after his death, his wife Juliana Busbee (1876-1962) requested that, in memory of her husband, the blue-green glaze not be used on Jugtown Pottery. Ben Owen said only Mr Busbee knew the formula for this glaze.”
Juliana Busbee was also instrumental in the marketing of Jugtown Pottery in the north, by setting up a Village Store in Greenwich Village in New York City in the latter part of 1917, later located at 37 East 60th Street. The shop was originally stocked with wares made by utilitarian potters in North Carolina who had their own kick wheels, manufacturing shapes familiar to them, although the Busbees decided they wanted to go beyond this type of inventory. The Busbees eventually worked with such potters as J.H. Owen (1866-1923), Charlie Teague (1901-1938) and Ben Owen. The marketing efforts of the Busbees eventually paid off by the time the Village Store closed in the late 1920s, with a North Carolina business that was thriving, drawing the attention of pottery enthusiasts from all over, and creating a lasting legacy, where Jugtown Pottery is an institution for pottery production today.
Nevertheless, this very good example of a Jugtown Han vase or urn just sold last night at Ararity Auctions in Alexandria, Virginia. This object sold realatively well too, whereas the pre-auction bidding had exceeded the conservative $500 to $750 estimate, although it ended up selling for $2,603.50, including the buyer's premium. The characteristics that typically differentiate these types of Han vases is the size and how dramatic the glaze colors appear. In this instance, the glaze is really good!
A Good Example of a Jugtown Han Vase Sells in Virginia
Historically, many of the potters in the Seagrove area became aware of a natural clay from Albany, New York (known as Albany slip) that could be used as a glaze. They began to use this natural clay as a glaze, throwing salt into the kiln at the very end of a firing in order to get the aptly named “frogskin” green-to-mustard color and glossy surface.
A Jugtown Stoneware Jar Found in Massachusetts
Please Stay Tuned...Much More to Come...
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