Conclusive Evidence: New Daniel Reichard Discovery Rewrites Red Earthenware History

Crocker Farm's upcoming America 250 auction in Sparks, Maryland is a landmark sale in itself, though I'm thrilled to learn about lot 43, which outlines an extraordinary piece of early American pottery that represents a very important historical discovery. The piece is a red earthenware jar with motifs of St. Ambrose, an influential religious figure, and the incised signature and date "Daniel Reichard / 1801" on its underside. This expands upon an article I wrote published in the April 19, 2024 issue of Antiques and The Arts Weekly, titled, Religious Red Earthenware Tobacco Jars Manufactured In The Mid-Atlantic Region & Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, where I suggested a jar I came across in a Manhattan penthouse with the initials "D.B.R." represented the potter Daniel Reichard (1780-1859). This new jar is conclusive evidence!

Furthermore, for decades, red earthenware jars featuring these highly distinct St. Ambrose relief panels were thought to have been produced exclusively by a potter named Jacob Bock (1789-1867) from Pennsylvania working out of Ontario, Canada in the 1820s. However, this newly surfaced piece completely reshapes that timeline, proving that this highly specific style actually originated in the Mid-Atlantic region. Really exciting stuff!

Some of these existing jars are also featured in my ninth book, a two-volume work, titled, America's Great Awakening and Migration: The Red Earthenware of Western New York, which explores how some migration carried the Hagerstown, Maryland potting tradition into Western New York and Ontario in the 1800s.

Here is a link to the book: America's Great Awakening and Migration: The Red Earthenware of Western New York and historic beverly

Note: The jar, originally found in a Manhattan penthouse, sold last year at Brunk Auctions in North Carolina and recently resurfaced at Antiques Associates At West Townsend, Massachusetts.: https://www.aaawt.com/antique/mid-atlantic-religious-tobacco-jar-with-lid-adorned-with-images-of-saint-ambrose/.

Early 19th Century Jar Made in the Mid-Atlantic Region

Base is Inscribed "Daniel Reichard / 1801"

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Crocker Farm

This is the Jar's Description in Crocker Farm's America 250 Catalog

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Photo Courtesy: Crocker Farm

This is Crocker Farm's America 250 Catalog

See Article for More Information

Religious Red Earthenware Tobacco Jars Manufactured In The Mid-Atlantic Region & Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

Published in the April 19, 2024 Issue of Antiques And The Arts Weekly

This is Page 42

Link: http://www.earlyamericanceramics.com/2024/04/new-published-feature-story-in-antiques_11.html

See Article for More Information

Religious Red Earthenware Tobacco Jars Manufactured In The Mid-Atlantic Region & Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

Published in the April 19, 2024 Issue of Antiques And The Arts Weekly

This is Page 43

Link: http://www.earlyamericanceramics.com/2024/04/new-published-feature-story-in-antiques_11.html

See Article for More Information

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