Exceptional Great Road Slip-Decorated Redware Bowl, probably Smyth County, VA, 2nd quarter 19th century, with tooled and rounded rim, the lead-glazed interior coated in yellow slip and decorated with a band of green copper slip, dark brown manganese dashes, and a wavy manganese stripe, all surrounding a copper slip flower. The distinctive color and aspects of the slip decoration point to an origin along the Great Wagon Road, in Smyth County, VA. A similarly-colored jar with slip-trailed decoration, one of a small number found in Smyth County, VA, is pictured on page 136 of Betsy K. White's Great Road Style (University of Virginia Press, 2006). The text describes this jar as "made in Smyth County, Virginia, near the North Carolina line [and] polychrome decorated with oxide slip in a design not usually seen on local pottery, but related to Moravian pottery from North Carolina." It also notes, "The Moravian potters, who were known to get their lead from Wythe County mines, are thought to have influenced local pottery, and this piece seems to support that conclusion" (White, p.128). The polychrome glaze and floral motif on this bowl also suggest this North Carolina influence. The rare form and bold decoration of this example place it among the finest examples of Great Road pottery to have surfaced in recent years. For similar examples, see White, p. 136-137, fig. 116, and p. 138, fig. 121. Provenance: A fresh-to-the-market example, recently found in the Nashville, TN area. Excellent condition with light wear to rim. H 2" ; Diameter 8".
