Very Rare Albany-Slip-Decorated Stoneware Face Jug, attributed to Charles P. Ferguson, Barrow County, GA, circa 1880-1890, ovoid jug with flared base and tapering spout, decorated with a large hand-modeled and applied clay face, including eyes with impressed oval pupils, large Roman nose with formed nostrils, small C-scroll ears, an open mouth with wavy, frowning lips. Heavily-combed incising forms hair on the figures head and spout, while short incised strokes create eyebrows on the face. The surface is unglazed, decorated with glossy brown Albany slip highlights to the head and hair. Recognizable by its squat form, distinctive facial features, and heavily-incised hair, this work is one of a small number of face jugs known by the hand of Barrow County, Georgia potter, Charles Ferguson. Ferguson's grandfather, Charles H. Ferguson (1793-1878), established the family pottery in Barrow County in 1846, after working for Abner Landrum in Pottersville, South Carolina. This connection to South Carolina's Edgefield District may have influenced the Ferguson family in the production of face jugs after establishing their Georgia pottery. Nineteenth century face jugs from the state of Georgia are significantly rarer than their counterparts produced in South Carolina and Alabama. However, innovators, such as Charles Ferguson and members of the Hewell family, would inspire future generations to produce this form regularly within the state, a tradition continuing to this day. Literature: For related examples, see Burrison, Brothers in Clay: The Story of Georgia Folk Pottery, pp. 74, 75, and 227. Provenance: A recently-surfaced example, which descended in the family of the consignor. Missing handle. A 1/2" in-the-firing ping to reverse. A 7/8" x 1/2" spout chip. A long flake spaning the length of the proper left ear. Some old, dark staining to surface. H 8".
