This was a completely unexpected find yesterday at a Salvation Army thrift store in Saugus, Massachusetts, whereas this circa 1870s-1880s hand-thrown turquoise glazed earthenware flowerpot or vase was most likely made at the Chelsea Keramic Art Works in Chelsea, Massachusetts. I actually found the vase with some dirt inside of it, which says that it was still used for flowers more than 140 years after it was originally manufactured.
Furthermore, I had also considered whether this could have been made at the Low Art Tile factory in Chelsea about the same period, which was a spinoff of the Chelsea Keramics business; however, I do not believe it is related to that company. Although, this was a popular glaze color and type of clay used at both of the Chelsea businesses
The Chelsea Keramic Art Works was the first American ceramics firm to designate itself as an "art pottery." It was founded in Chelsea by members of the Robertson family, all of whom had honed their skills in the ceramics industry in Britain before coming to this country. Alexander W. Robertson (1829-1906), was a fifth-generation potter and he established the Chelsea Keramic Art Works in 1866. Alexander worked alongside his sons Fred (1869-1952) and Hugh Robertson (1844-1908). Hugh was also involved with the Chelsea Pottery U.S. during the circa 1891-1895 period, and then the company's successor, the Dedham Pottery in Dedham, Massachusetts. But once the Chelsea Keramic Art Works closed its doors in 1889, Alexander and Fred relocated west in order to produce pottery in California, beginning in the 1890s.
Interestingly, the base of this flowerpot or vase is not impressed with the typical "CKAW" or Low Art Tile mark, and instead, it is inscribed "DK" with what appears to be two slash marks and the letter "A." This object also did not travel very far through the years, seeing that Chelsea is located less than ten miles from Saugus.
For some of the better objects known today from the Chelsea Keramic Art Works - see the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
Note: Last month, I found a pitcher in this same thrift store from about the same period that was made at New England Pottery Company in East Boston, Massachusetts; here is a link to that story: http://www.earlyamericanceramics.com/2024/04/a-good-late-19th-century-pitcher-from.html.
Signed Example of Pottery from Chelsea, Massachusetts
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