Very Rare Small Stoneware Lidded Jar Impressed W. SMITH / GREENWICH / NEW YORK

November 2, 2013 Stoneware Auction

Lot #: 30

Price Realized: $345.00

($300 hammer, plus 15% buyer's premium)

PLEASE NOTE: This result is 11 years old, and the American ceramics market frequently changes. Additionally, small nuances of color, condition, shape, etc. can mean huge differences in price. If you're interested in having us sell a similar item for you, please contact us here.

November 2, 2013 Auction Catalog

◀︎ Back to Catalog

▶ Login

Very Rare Half-Gallon Cobalt-Decorated Stoneware Jar, Stamped "W. SMITH / GREENWICH / NEW YORK," Manhattan, NY origin, circa 1840, cylindrical jar with rounded shoulder and squared rim, decorated around the shoulder with three groups of brushed cobalt swags. Shoulder impressed with the elusive maker's mark of Manhattan, NY potter, Washington Smith, within an oval border. According to William Ketchum's Potters and Potteries of New York State, 1650-1900, "Though Washington Smith made stoneware in Manhattan from 1833 unil 1861, relatively few of his marked pieces have been identified" (Ketchum, p. 60). Smith's shop was located at 32-34 Eighteenth Street, on Manhattan's west side in the area known as Chelsea (Ketchum, p. 59). Includes a salt-glazed stoneware lid, which fits tightly and is a different color, but is possibly original to the jar. Excellent size and form. Attesting to the rarity of this jar is the fact that it is the first signed Washington Smith piece we have ever offered. Rim chips. Several very small base chips. Some staining. A few chips edge of lid. H (excluding lid) 7 1/8".