Rare Four-Gallon Stoneware Crock with Cobalt House and Flag Decoration, Stamped "A.O. WHITTEMORE / HAVANA, NY," circa 1870, cylindrical crock with tooled shoulder, semi-squared rim, and applied lug handles, decorated with a slip-trailed scene of a house with two chimneys, six windows, and a door, flanked by a pine tree and an American flag on pole with ball-shaped finial, all underscored by elaborate swagged, scalloped, and dashed ground cover below. Cobalt highlights to maker's mark. The iconic Havana house motif is considered difficult-to-find in its own right and few are known including an American flag. This example is the second finest piece of Havana, New York stoneware that we have offered, only outdone by a fish-decorated crock sold in our Summer 2022 auction. Provenance: Crocker Farm, Inc., May, 21, 2005, lot 42; James Chebalo Collection. Excellent condition with a minor chip to proper left handle (possibly in the making), a chip to interior of rim, and some in-the-firing iron pings to surface, including one to rim in reverse that includes a 1" surface fissure, not visible on interior. H 10 5/8".
