July 20, 2019 Auction Featured Photos
American Stoneware Icon. Important and Unique Stoneware Presentation Jug with Incised Federal Eagle Decoration, Inscribed "Liberty for / Ever" and "L. Riggs / May the 5th 1819", South Amboy, NJ origin, 1819. The finest eagle-decorated example of American stoneware to come to auction in years, this jug carries an impeccable provenance and publication history. Provenance: Originally discovered in the 1930s, in a second-floor closet of the Charles Rue house near Plainfield, NJ by a teenager, who was helping his mother hang wallpaper there. He offered the owners, relatives of the "L. Riggs" on the reverse on the jug, $25 at the time, but was turned down. He later purchased the jug at the Charles Rue estate auction in 1956, ultimately selling it to the consignor's father in 1973. This jug has been off the market since that time. Included with this lot is a notarized letter from the man who owned the jug between 1956-1973, discussing the piece's history. A second letter included with this lot was written in 1984 by New Jersey stoneware authority, M. Lelyn Branin, discussing the jug's possible manufacture by the Warne family of potters of South Amboy, NJ. Literature: Discussed and illustrated in Branin, The Early Makers of Handcrafted Earthenware and Stoneware in Central and Southern New Jersey, pp. 74, 82. Branin describes this jug in his book as "one of the most incised pieces of New Jersey stoneware on record".
Branin goes on to draw a connection between the person for whom the jug was made, Lewis Riggs, and the Warne family of potters of South Amboy, NJ. According to Branin, "about two weeks before the date on the jug, one 21 April 1819, Lewis Riggs bought from Hannah (Warne) DeWitt, a daughter of William Warne, brother of (potter) Thomas Warne, all of her rights and interest in the estate of her father and grandfather, which gave him and his wide Ida a share in both of those estates. Riggs seems to have been related in some way to the Warne family, possibly through his wife Ida, who might have been either a daughter or granddaughter of William Warne. Lewis Riggs was an executor, with David Hall, of William Warne's estate. David Hall was a brother of Joshua Warne's second wife, Patience Hall Clark." (Branin, p. 74) H 13".
Among the Earliest Dated Dave Vessels Known. Exceedingly Rare and Important Two-Gallon Alkaline-Glazed Stoneware Jug, Incised "April 18th 1831", Impressed "I" at Base, Dave at the Harvey and Reuben Drake's Pottersville Pottery, Edgefield District, SC, 1831. This jug survives as one of the earliest dated vessels attributed to Edgefield's famous enslaved African-American potter, Dave. Adding to its importance is the fact that it is one of a few extant pieces of Dave stoneware bearing a date verifying that it was made during the four-year-period that the Pottersville Pottery belonged to Harvey Drake and his brother, Reuben, the former being Dave's sole owner for the first thirty-two years of the slave's life. At the time of the publication of the Ceramics in America 2006 article, "Beneath His Magic Touch: The Dated Vessels of the African-American Slave Potter Dave", written by Arthur Goldberg and James Witkowski, only three dated vessels attributed to Dave and bearing an earlier date are known, two dating to 1829 and a third dating to March of 1831, the year this jug was manufactured.
This work utilizes a classic Dave treatment, the incised punctate, as an elaborate decorative embellishment rather than a gallonage notation, as seen on his pieces from a later time period. In all, over ninety punctates form a sinuous border around the date, possibly the most outstanding display of punctate markings found on any extant Dave vessel. The base features a rare "I" stamp found on Pottersville stoneware, and the surface displays the pottery's highly-prized two-toned glaze, in the form of a glossy green top cascading over a lighter-glazed ground. Surviving in immaculate condition and combining beauty, rarity, and historical significance, this work is easily-regarded as one of the most important examples of Southern stoneware that we have ever offered. H 13 3/8".
Decoration, Form, and Maker. Very Rare One-Gallon Stoneware Pitcher with Incised Bird on Flowering Branch Decoration, attributed to Henry Remmey, Sr., Baltimore, circa 1812-1829. This pitcher exhibits a distinctive trait found on a small number of Remmey's best Baltimore products: a combination of incised decoration with brushed cobalt floral designs. Cobalt leaves ornament the collar and a fan-shaped floral motif, closely-related to those found on stamped "H. MYERS" merchant stoneware made by Remmey, appear to the left of the bird. This pitcher was made during an important time and place in American stoneware production. Between the years 1810 and 1830, Baltimore witnessed an influx of skilled potters who produced some of the most artistically-incised works known in all of American stoneware. This lot is one of a small number of incised bird pitchers produced by Remmey, a Manhattan-trained potter, that indicate this period's superior level of craftsmanship. H 9 1/2".
Outstanding and Rare Two-Gallon Stoneware Churn with Cobalt Deer Scene, Stamped "FORT EDWARD / POTTERY CO.", George Satterlee, Fort Edward, NY, circa 1859. H 13".
Extremely Rare Anna Pottery Stoneware Snake Flask, Incised "Harper's $500.00" and "Little Brown Jug / 1883," Signed and Dated "Anna Pottery 1884," Wallace and Cornwall Kirkpatrick, Anna, IL. The slogan, "Harper's $500.00", and 1883 date refer to Illinois's Harper High License Law of 1883. Inspired by the High License Temperance Movement, Harper's Law placed a minimum annual license fee of $500 for the sale of liquors, thereby drastically reducing the presence of saloons and other liquor establishments in the state of Illinois. While consistent with the temperance-related themes associated with much of their work, this flask is the first example by the Kirkpatrick Brothers we have seen bearing this particular inscription. The rarity of this example is compounded by the unusual pinched flask form and large size. A fine and historically significant example of Anna Pottery, carrying an excellent provenance. Provenance: Previously found in the early 20th century on an Indian Reservation in Wewoka, OK. Literature: Illustrated and discussed in The Magazine Antiques, June 1933, p. 204. H 8 3/4".
