A Little-More Information About a Recently Found Red Earthenware PiggyBank

Piggy Bank Report 1

I left out a key characteristic seen on the base of the red earthenware pig bank from last night's report because I wanted to do a little-more research before I discussed it. Incised on the base in capital letters is the word, NORN.

The Word NORN Inscribed on the Base of the Piggy Bank

According to what I have read, "A Norn is a part of the Norse mythology of Scandinavia, Britain and Germany until the establishment of Christianity. Norns are thought to be related to Germanic female deities…A Norn is any of three virgin goddesses of destiny or fate; the goddess of the past (Urd), the goddess of the present (Verdandi) and the goddess of the future (Skuld)…Norse legend suggests Norns were female beings who rule the destiny of gods and men. They also arrive when a person is born in order to determine his or her future.

There are both good and bad norns which can cause tragic events in the world - while others act as kind and protective goddesses. Some norns are regarded as shadowy, background figures who only ever reveal their fateful secrets to men as their fates come to pass…norns are also sometimes associated with death and the after life; however not all aspects of Norns were negative as they were equally associated with life and birth."

I tried finding some-kind of association with a last name (Norn), but all I could find was the mythology and religion that stands behind the idea of the NORN. Could this piggy bank perhaps have been made for a newly born child and the word Norn was placed on the bank to symbolize the goddess of the future for promise in prosperity and a fortunate future? Perhaps…it's a stretch, but it could also have even been made by a potter for a newly born child. The skill of the bank suggests that whomever this potter was that they were not overly skilled, but it does suggest to me that it falls within the whole folk art realm of today's art world. I would like to say the bank was made in Pennsylvania by a German potter, but I have no strong evidence to backup that claim.

Beyond this information, I am still stuck on an origin; although I do feel it is American from the late nineteenth-century or possibly the twentieth-century.

  Red Earthenware Piggy Bank

Probably Late 19th Century or Early 20th Century

Wonderful Folk Decorated Face
Measures 3 1/2" Tall and 6" Long
Country of Origin not Currently Known

  Unusual Decoration on the Back

Pig Decorated in a Greenish Lead Glaze
The Entire Bank is Hand-Made

Found in a Hubbardston, Ma Home

Purchased Recently at a North Shore Massachusetts Flea Market

Any comments, suggestions, attributions, ideas…etc. are more than welcome.

Please Stay Tuned…Much More to Come...

A Fun Folky Red Earthenware Piggy Bank Recently Found in a Central Massachusetts Home

I thought I would have a little fun with tonight's report - this little whimsical guy was recently found in Hubbardston, Massachusetts by a Massachusetts antiques dealer. The sole purpose is a piggy bank; although a child's toy could also be argued. The bank appears to have some age to it. It is decorated with a greenish-colored lead glaze on top of a red earthenware body. I really enjoy the pig's face. It's fun and really shows how folk art can transition itself onto utilitarian pottery. Pigs were a popular figure with a variety of early American products that included cast iron, wood, carvings, weathervanes, embroidery, stuffed leather animals, fire boards, furniture and even formal paintings.

The bank was recently found in a Hubbardston home - which is located in the central part of the state. The entire bank was hand-made. None of it was molded - and I am led to believe it has been around for a while due to some visible wear on three of the four feet. The pig measures 3 1/2 inches tall and six inches long. It's a fun piece! The weight is heavy - which strongly suggests to me it could very-well be an American product; although banks were also popular with English potters as well. It could also be Continental European, but the face is what leads me to believe it may be American. I have never seen anything like it before. I know some forms like this (mostly animal figures) were made as end of the day pieces by Pennsylvania and Virginia potters in the nineteenth-century; however most of those pieces had no fundamental purpose. Pennsylvania potters were also known for making creative banks that included rocking horses, santa claus figures and dogs in a variety of unusual positions. That's only to name a few. Red earthenware banks were made in many forms by early American potters. Stoneware banks were also popular with nineteenth-century potters in Pennsylvania and New York - where each area also had fun with its forms.

I purchased the bank this morning directly from the antique dealer who discovered it  - at a local flea market on Boston's North Shore around 6:00am.

 Red Earthenware Piggy Bank

Probably Late 19th Century or Early 20th Century

Wonderful Folk Decorated Face

 Recently Found in a Hubbardston, Ma Home

Purchased this Morning at a North Shore Massachusetts Flea Market

 Unusual Decoration on the Back

Pig Decorated in a Greenish Lead Glaze

 Measures 3 1/2" Tall and 6" Long

The Entire Bank is Hand-Made

I am kind stumped on this one so any thoughts on a possible origin would be very-much appreciated. I think there's a chance it was made in Pennsylvania, but I am not positive of it. It doesn't exactly fit into the norm of what is known for end of the days pieces or banks made in the state. The weight does make it feel like its an American product.

I have also heard about a traveling potter known as the Hobo Potter who worked in Pennsylvania in the nineteenth-century, but this does not fit into his style either. The Hobo Potter was a potter who made animal figures in exchange for a bed to sleep in at night…etc.

Please Stay Tuned…Much More to Come...

A Very Important Discovery: A Never Before Seen Jug Form Attributed to William Pecker of Merrimacport, Massachusetts

Only a matter of a few hours I ago - I came across one of the rarest forms I have ever seen made by the potter, William Pecker (Ca. 1784-1820) of Merrimacport, Massachusetts. Pecker was mostly-known for his pumpkin-orange colored glazes with manganese carefully brushed on top. In the October 2013 edition of the New England Antiques Journal - I showed a rare green-glazed jug made by Pecker (link to report) in an article I wrote. I only know of one other form that was glazed green by Pecker and it sold at a Maine auction-house in 2004. It was previously in the collection of Maine antique dealer and collector, John Sideli.

Out of curiosity, I visited the Salvation Army on Route 1 in Saugus, Massachusetts today. I didn't expect to find much, but one of my methods of searching for rare early American pottery is to look in the unexpected places. You never known until you look.

I arrived at the thrift store just in-time - as some new inventory was just put out for sale on the floor this morning. I was very fortunate to find another Beverly, Massachusetts garden pot made at C.A. Lawrence Pottery that was painted pink. When was the last time you saw an antique American utilitarian or garden pottery form that was intended to be pink? This is a first for me; however a jug tucked away in a glass case is what really caught my attention. The jug looked brand-new because there were no condition issues - it wasn't expensive so I took a chance with it. I couldn't see the base in the store because it was covered with the price tag. When I walked out of the thrift store I almost-immediately peeled the price tag off the bottom and realized what I had just discovered. I was shocked and in aw at the same time. The jug was made by William Pecker. Pecker had incorporated the pumpkin-orange glaze and the green glaze I mention above into this spectacular little jug. It is also a jug form that has never previously been attributed to Pecker. I have probably seen fifty to sixty pieces made by William Pecker from private collections to Historic New England and the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. and there is nothing else like this that I know of that exists today. Absolutely wonderful! Have a look for yourself - it stands a small 3 1/2 inches tall. It may have been intended to hold vinegar.

 Collection of William Pecker Red Earthewnare - Merrimacport, Ma

(Left) Green Jug that was Pictured in Oct. 2013 New England Antiques Journal

(Right) Traditional Pumpkin-Orange Glazed Herb Pot with Manganese Brushed on Top

(Center) Green and Orange Glazed Jug that was Found Today

 William Pecker Red Earthenware Jug - Merrimacport, Ma

Wonderful Pumpkin-Orange and Green Glaze

Ca. 1784-1820

Stands 3.5" Tall

A Form Never Attributed to William Pecker Before

 Traditional William Pecker Handle

 Wonderful Green Glaze with some Incised Line Decoration

Wonderful Pumpkin-Orange Glaze with a Footed Base

In case you were curious - here is the C.A. Lawrence Pottery garden jar that was also found. I assume these are coming from the same estate. I was told they are both brand-new to the store. This is another example of an ancient Chinese form that was manipulated by the potters who worked in Beverly in the 1870s, 1880s and 1890s.

 C.A. Lawrence Pottery Red Earthenware Garden Urn - Beverly, Ma

Painted in a Very Unusual Pink Color

Ca. 1870s, 1880s or 1890s

Stands 18" Tall

 Decoration Somewhat Reminds Me of Fish Scales

Nicely Accomplished Handles and Rim

Please Stay Tuned…Much More to Come...

A New Collection of Essex County Made Red Earthenware Shards Found on the Waters River in Danversport, Massachusetts

Today I went back to a river in Danversport, Massachusetts where I have found success in the past with the abundance of red earthenware shards that consistently make their way onto the river's mud and rock-lined shore. It appears this river was a dumping ground for local trash in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In the past, I have discovered slip decorated shards that appear to have been from locally made plates. The manner in which the slip was applied is similar to shards Lura Woodside Watkins (Early New England Potters and Their Wares) collected from the site of the Kettle Pottery in Salem Village (now Peabody), Massachusetts - a site that is only a short distance from where I was today. The comparison is interesting since most of those products are from the early-to-mid eighteenth century. I think there is a good chance these shards are related to the Kettle family - and interestingly, among the shards I found today, were more examples of slip decoration.

Slip Decorated Shards Report

 Waters, River - Danversport, Ma

 Waters, River - Danversport, Ma

These following shards were all found on the surface level just as the tide had receded back from parts of the shore. It is likely the shards had surfaced from the cold winter and all the ice the area saw. I believe all of these shards are from the local businesses that successfully operated all-over Essex County in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The first two photos are more examples of slip decoration.

Slip Decorated Red Earthenware Shard - Probably a Plate

Possibly 18th Century, Otherwise Early 19th Century

Slip Decorated Red Earthenware Shard - Probably a Plate

Possibly 18th Century, Otherwise Early 19th Century

This next shard is photographed how it appeared when I walked up on it submerged in the mud a few feet away from the shoreline. It is large - probably measuring six or seven inches long. There is no glaze. It is probably the remains of a utilitarian crock, but what really peaked my attention about it is the thickness in-which it was potted. It is very thickly potted. This is the first instance I have seen anything this dense from an Essex County potter. I have reviewed a large collection of shards kept at the Narbonne House (National Parks Services) in Salem, Massachusetts - which represents a nice sample of products made in Essex County and none appear this thick. Its thickness reminds me of late seventeenth and early eighteenth century products made just to the south in Charlestown, Massachusetts - and regardless of its maker, it does appear early.

Probably 18th Century Red Earthenware Crock Shard

Unusually Thickly Potted for Products Made in Essex County

The most common glazes found in Essex County are what many of us refer to as Osborn Pottery products made in South Danvers (today known as Peabody), Massachusetts. Many of these products are decorated with red and black glazes. The Osborns are probably the most recognized potters by today's standards of who worked in Essex County. Below are shards decorated in a variety of colors that are not the typical colors associated with this area, but it is my belief they were all locally made.

 Dark Brown Glazed Shards

Late 18th or Early 19th Century

Probably Related to Essex County's Industry

 Brown, Red and Caramel Colored Glazes

Late 18th or Early 19th Century

Probably Related to Essex County's Industry

These following two shards are interesting; the first (left) is ovoid, which may indicate it is from a jug or a pitcher. It is decorated in a reddish and caramel glaze. The second demonstrates a pair of incised lines with a brownish glaze.

 (Left) Ovoid Shard with a Reddish and Caramel Glaze

Probably from a Jug or a Pitcher

(Right) Shard with a Pair of Incised Lines with a Brownish Glaze

Both Probably Related to Essex County's Industry

The rim on this next shard reminds me of rims placed on milk pans by some Maine potters in the nineteenth century. When I initially saw the shard, I wondered if there was an influence taken from Essex County that was then applied by the potters who used a similar rim in Maine. It is an interesting concept and theory to recognize - after all, Essex County was a training ground for many potters who eventually migrated north of Massachusetts for work.

 Brown Glazed Shard with an Interesting Rim that is Similar to some Milk Pan Rims made in Maine

Together with a Black Glazed Shard

Both Probably Related to Essex County's Industry

Another Angle of the Rim

Please Stay Tuned for Much More...

The Incredible 17th Century Artifacts Uncovered at the Garrett Site in Charlestown, Massachusetts

The idea of seventeenth-century red earthenware made in New England is basically only legend to me. There is scholarly information in certain publications; however the concept of any existing is unheard of. Even the idea of related shards is not something I have ever known about until recently.

In this report, I am going to introduce you to a group of red earthenware shards that could possibly be among the earliest products identified to a pre-1650 context from any American potter known to exist. With my continued study for my eventual book - I have come across a group of red earthenware products most-likely made in Charlestown, Massachusetts that are from a 1638-1658 archaeological context. Absolutely incredible! If these shards have taught me anything - it is that the earliest red earthenware products made in New England appear to have been thickly potted wares with very minimal glazes. Slip decoration does not appear to have been used until the end of the seventeenth-century (post-1675) in Charlestown.

These shards were uncovered from a cellar hole that was filled in around 1658. A ship captain by the name of Garrett built a home on Charlestown's waterfront in 1638 - and by 1658, the home had been removed and the stone-lined cellar was filled-in with local landfill. The foundation hole was approximately 9x12 feet. If you happen to remember my report from a few months ago - where I introduced a group of seventeenth-century red earthenware pipes - this is the man/merchant whom they belonged to (January 25th Report). Garrett was a sea traveler and probably an explorer. His home was filled with foreign products that included Delft tiles with exotic animals, tin glazed ceramics from Portugal, Spain and France and he even appeared to have had a stock-pile of cannon balls. It is a bit of mystery the reason behind the cannon balls, but a number of them were found when the property was excavated in the 1980s by a team of professional archaeologists on behalf of the Big Dig Archaeology Project.

A Pair of Cannon Balls Uncovered at the Garrett Site

There Were Many More

Origin Not Known

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Rocks that Were Previously Apart of the Garrett House Foundation or Cellar

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

It is my belief, the domestic red earthenware found on this property was related to Phillip Drinker, who is reportedly New England's first utilitarian red earthenware potter. This is what I have learned about his products - he made thickly potted products that measured upwards of 3/4" or more in thickness and his glazes were basic ranging from black to different shades of brown. Sometimes the brown glazes were littered with darker brown spots - similar to products made by Maine potters in the nineteenth-century. The simple products may also relate to the state of the Charlestown business in the seventeenth-century - where it was not an overly successful operation and the finances were not abundant. There may have been slip decoration, but I am yet to find any results of it before 1675.

Here is how some of these 1638-1658 red earthenware products appear:

 17th Century Red Earthenware Shard - Probably Made in Charlestown, Ma

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

 Interesting Brown Glaze with Dark Brown Spots

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Typical Expected Clay Color of Products Made in Charlestown in the 17th and 18th Centuries

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

An interesting characteristic I have found with some of these seventeenth-century products is the appearance of a bottom glaze. It's not a technique often-found with red earthenware products made in New England before or after the American Revolution. 

 17th Century Red Earthenware Crock or Jar Shards - Probably Made in Charlestown, Ma

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

 Very Interesting Bottom Glaze Similar to the Product Below

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

 17th Century Red Earthenware Crock or Jar Shard - Probably Made in Charlestown, Ma

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Very Interesting Bottom Glaze Similar to the Product Above

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Here are a few more photos of mostly Charlestown-made red earthenware; although there are a few European products scattered in amongst the shards.

 Small Brown Glazed Red Earthenware Handle - Probably Made in Charlestown, Ma

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

 Another Angle to the Handle

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

 Mixture of 17th Century Red Earthenware Shards - Probably Made in Charlestown, Ma

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Mostly 17th Century Red Earthenware Products Related to Charlestown, Ma

A Few European Shards Mixed in

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

I found it interesting seeing the amount of bricks that were uncovered at the Garrett site. It is my belief that they were probably the remains of the chimney system that once existed. I assume the bricks were also made locally; however I do not know of any brick-makers who worked in Charlestown this early, but they must have been there. The clay source was likely the same as that used by the Charlestown potters in the seventeenth and eighteenth-centuries.

17th Century Brick Probably Made in Charlestown

Maybe Related to the Chimney System at the Garrett House

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Among my favorite artifacts at the Garrett site was an incredible Iberian jar. I am not expert, but I believe Iberian jars sometimes held olives and are occasionally attributed to Spain. The jar features an interesting pair of incised lines placed on the shoulder that is a similar characteristic applied by many New England potters to jugs and related products made in the eighteenth and nineteenth-centuries.

 17th Century Iberian Jar that May Have Been Made in Spain

It Could Possibly Have Held Olives En Route for the New World

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Incised Lines Around Should Were Commonly Used by Potters Throughout New England

I will leave you with these two pictures of a stoneware shard found within the same 1638-1658 context. I assume it is a German product; however I am not positive of that. The exterior glaze was much more vibrant than the duller glaze on the interior. 

 17th Century Stoneware Shard - Possibly a Tankard

Uncovered at the Garrett Site

Ca. 1638-1658 Archaeological Context

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

 Interior of Stoneware Shard

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Dept. - West Roxbury, Ma

Much More to Come...

Sgraffito Decoration and the Early Pennsylvania-German Red Earthenware Potters

"When the first German immigrants settled in Pennsylvania, late in the seventeenth century, they brought the art of sgraffito and slip decoration with them, and established it as a new process of ceramic manufacture in the state. The pioneer German potters erected numerous small pot-works for the manufacture of such wares as were needed to supply the simple wants of their neighbours. Each local pottery seems to have been supported by the patronage of relatives and friends of the proprietor, or by sales which were made in the neighbouring towns...and about the middle of the eighteenth century a number of American potters in eastern Pennsylvania began the manufacture of sgraffito and slip decorated earthenware, having adopted the German methods, even to the extent of employing the tulip as a decorative motif and using English inscriptions to beautify their more ornate productions." (Edwin Atlee Barber - Lead Glazed Pottery - Doubleday, Page & Co, New York, 1907)

American archaeologist and author, Edwin Atlee Barber (1851-1916) described the process of sgraffito in the book, Tulip Ware of the Pennsylvania-German Potters; "Slip engraving consists of covering the ware completely with a thin coating of slip, through which the ornamental devices are scratched with a pointed instrument, to show the darker clay beneath...sgraffito work is characterized by dark designs in white or yellowish field...decorations generally appear as depressed."

Shown below are examples of sgraffito decorated plates, which include a motif I absolutely enjoy - the tulip, which first became popular when Turkish potters incorporated the flower into their products in the sixteenth-century. The idea behind the tulip soon after spread throughout Europe before landing in the New World.

The first picture is from a recent sale held at Pook and Pook Auctions in Downington, Pennsylvania - it is what I would describe as a wonderful example of tulip ware made by the Pennsylvania-German potter, Solomon Grimm. High-end examples of tulip decorated red earthenware can achieve results that reach hundreds-of-thousands of dollars in today's market. The motif was likely the most popular with potters in Pennsylvania and North Carolina in the eighteenth and nineteenth-centuries. The remaining photos were taken from the large collection of Pennsylvania-made plates currently on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art - where many examples of sgraffito decoration can be seen.

Berks County, Pennsylvania Sgraffito or Tulip Ware Red Earthenware Plate

Ca. 1800-1820

Attributed to the German-Pennsylvania Potter Solomon Grimm

Photo Courtesy: Pook and Pook Auctions - Downington, Pa

 Large Collection of Pennsylvania-Made Red Earthenware Plates

Many Examples of Sgraffito Decoration are Seen

Ca. 18th and 19th Centuries

Photo Courtesy: Philadelphia Museum of Art - Philadelphia, Pa

 Large Collection of Pennsylvania-Made Red Earthenware Plates

Many Examples of Sgraffito Decoration are Seen

Ca. 18th and 19th Centuries

Photo Courtesy: Philadelphia Museum of Art - Philadelphia, Pa

Large Collection of Pennsylvania-Made Red Earthenware Plates

Many Examples of Sgraffito Decoration are Seen

Ca. 18th and 19th Centuries

Photo Courtesy: Philadelphia Museum of Art - Philadelphia, Pa

I recently acquired a wonderful early example of Pennsylvania red earthenware from Robesonia, Pennsylvania antiques dealer Greg Kramer. As you can see below - it's in the form of a bottle, which is a rare form from any American utilitarian potter. The bottle may date to the  last-quarter of the eighteenth-century. The reason for showing this bottle is it reminds me of an example of sgraffito without the scratch decoration. Prior to Greg Kramer's ownership - it was previously in the important collection of the late Pennsylvania-German potter, Lester Breininger - who also operated and resided in Robesonia. I do not believe the bottle was made in Philadelphia, but it was probably instead a product made in one of the nearby counties. The bottle features green and yellow slip decoration - with a clear lead glaze. It stands roughly seven inches tall and is thinly potted. I have never seen another bottle in this form with this type of glaze before. I assume it was intended for a utilitarian purpose; however my initial and natural observation is that it is actually a vase intended for freshly cut flowers and a more formal setting.

 Pennsylvania Red Earthenware Bottle

Probably Late 18th Century, Possibly Early 19th Century

Stands Roughly 7" Tall

 Bottle is Decorated in Yellow and Green Slip with a Clear Lead Glaze

Wonderful Form that was Thinly Potted

 Base of Bottle

Interior of Bottle

The study of Pennsylvania potters and their use of sgraffito decoration is a wonderful topic. Not many potters outside of Pennsylvania even attempted such decoration and very few (excluding North Carolina potters) achieved the quality and recognition today in which the potters of Pennsylvania have garnered. A strong case can be made that the Pennsylvania potters as a collective group were more talented than any other state (don't persecute me for saying that...I know an argument can be made for every region) in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

For more information about tulip and sgraffito decoration - you can use the search feature on this website for a group of reports I wrote last spring that specifically focused on the use of tulips by early American immigrant craftsmen.

Much More to Come...