Alabama Folk Pottery, by Joey Brackner, University of Alabama Press, 2006. The style made by Henriot and that of other potteries from this area is generically referred to as "Quimper" by collectors. Watt Pottery is in a class I call yellowware, since they used a clear glaze over the yellow clay instead of colors. 29 SEP 2017 Collecting Italian pottery can be fun and rewarding, but identifying individual pieces in regard to their value, maker, or history can be challenging. One way to identify an antique vase is to check for the artist's name on the bottom of the vase. It was a dramatic decrease in family pottery after World War I.". Water is mixed with clay to turn it into a workable medium. See the Frankoma pitcher, right. He has been a contributor to Antiques Roadshow Online since 1998. The earliest examples were imported or produced locally for the army. American pottery includes both utilitarian and art pottery produced in the USA in factories and studios. Just a glance at the foot shows the numbers on this McCoy or Brush pot (left). Several companies used stilts for glazing pottery, and the bottom will be glazed over completely with three small marks for the stilts. How to identify US pottery companies and origins by clay color. Antique Collection Bourbon. Why Your Collectibles Are Actually Worthless. Many of these ceramics, though, are difficult to identify as they were commonly marked simply with "Italy" and a number, so a picture of the piece can be an invaluable first step toward future identification. Other potters moved west from the Atlantic Piedmont, bringing their alkaline and salt glaze traditions to the state. Learn about vintage Tiffin satin glass made in colors, including black. Look for the McCoy mark. It was an economy of scale. This is probably most evident in Van Briggle and Rookwood. There is also the option of consulting an expert for surety. Finding the right consistency can be tricky if you do not have much experience working with clay. Henriot used a number of different marks beginning in 1891, with "HR" being the first. Comparatively speaking, American pottery is heftier than pieces from Europe and Asia. Tips and tricks on how to shop for American pottery and how to get the best value for your time. This will give you a comprehensive idea of what to look for when identifying bone china with no markings. If you're looking to identify a piece of marked pottery, you may want to check our American Pottery Marks and Resource Directory and compare the mark there. Decoration on neck parallel vertical incisions. Before pottery wheels were electrified, great leg and arm strength was required to turn them, Brackner notes. Others have a completely dry or unglazed bottom, and still others have wedge shapes on the bottom. These will usually give a rough indication as to the time period and place of production. We carry pottery from the most amazing Alabama potters. White said Sand Mountain pottery is made from a gray clay that often gets streaks of red when the pot is fired. Explain that you want to do further research on the piece and offer to share any information found with him. Terra Nigra, grey-black vessels, continued in fashion until the early 70s AD. Here are the 5 key ways to identify Roseville pottery Pottery Marks Pottery marks are found in the unglazed area on the underside of a piece, appearing as a series of letters or numbers. You can find more photos and information about checking the bottom of the pot to identify American pottery in this article. "You have a more durable pottery," says Joey Brackner, the author of Alabama Folk Pottery and director of the Alabama Center for Traditional Culture, who notes that earthenware had the fragility of garden pots. Start a collection or add to your existing. Pieces with flowers, willows, and rivers are normally associated with this pottery. Spend time looking at different types of pottery and get to know what the real thing looks like. Maybe you thought they were emptying the contents or dusting the shop! McCoy made a lot of vases, planters, and cookie jars in distinctive shapes. What is the glaze, finish, or decoration? Nemadji has a distinctive look, done almost in mission style like the swirl clay potters. Click (or tap) on them to see it. It has a few classic vessel types, such as pots with lugs on the side. Examining the bottom for stilt marks may reveal some numbers that may help with identification, too. Compare these cups and saucers (left) with the Gilmer vase (above). These include Shawnee and Hull, two of the major production companies in the early 20th century. Haeger often looks as if it has a "seam" in the middle of the glazed bottom, and that helps in the identification of any Haeger or Royal Haeger that is not otherwise marked. After establishing the material and technique used to create the piece, the three best ways to identify an antique are by establishing its shape, decoration, glaze and most importantly of all, its markings. Get your hands on the past. Since antiques are valuable, many faux potteries are disguised to look like antiques. Mosaic Tile made pieces that were not tiles, and they often have a beige clay. Stamp on the pottery. Traditional pottery and other forms of ceramicware are made with earthenware, a porous form of clay which must be glazed in order for the pottery to hold food or liquid. Vontury of New Jersey was also high-fired pottery, and much of the Vontury is done in pastels with impressionistic nature scenes. Collins, This pitcher (right) is marked Acoma on the side, See the odd boomerang ashtray (left) by Mosiac Tile, of the American Bisque wedge foot (right), the marks on this RumRill console bowl (right), the numbers on this McCoy or Brush pot (left), (More information through this link to Wikipedia. Standard glaze, which is made up of a shiny brown finish, was popular at the turn of the 20th century. The ZIP code of Pottery Branch Road is 36272, There are about 198 street addresses. Here's a look at the Vontury mark (right). And so, I have tried to pick up where I left off all those years ago at school. Rims may be decorated with oblique or trans parallel incisions or impressions. This is a good place to start to identify the country of origin, if it is not shown. Take a look at the Watt Pottery yellowware bowl (left). We have tried to include as many ceramics and pottery marks as possible, but also tried to avoid too much duplication. Some of the southwest Native American pottery is beige clay, too. Who Made American Pottery Bird Figurines? The glazes in pottery went with fashion of the day, and trends can be noted, although there are lots of exceptions. An unmarked piece of pottery is one that has no logo, stamp, date, or number. Learn how to distinguish American pottery by clay color, the base, numbers written on the foot, glaze type and the weight. Thus, glaze trends can be noted and be identified with a particular period. By the 7th century for the most part stamping is the only decoration. 347 Results. Terra Rubra, orange-coated cream to buff vessels, scarcely survived the 50s AD. However, if the bottom is clean, it most probably is a disguised faux. Much of the Alamo and Gilmer pottery is vitreous, pottery fired at a high temperature in the kiln. Later, as others became involved in turning pottery in Edgefield, notably Germans and African slaves, 2023 Peach State Archaeological Society. Think about this. If clays fired too dark, manufacturers coated the flagons in a pale slip, because they were supposed to be lightly coloured! Robinson-Ransbottom was mostly yellow clay. Also manufactured outside Thetford at various sites including Ipswich and Norwich. Identifying the manufacturer, age or value of your porcelain and pottery is made easier and accurate by looking at the markings on the back. Note the difference, though. See more ideas about pottery, antique pottery, sand. Identify your pots and porcelain with this reference guide to Pottery marks found on U.S. and some Canadian pottery. They tell us about trade and the nature of long distance links, but also because they are closely linked to particular imported commodities. Once you have done this for a few years, you will develop confidence in your skill. You can also identify porcelain by examining the type of glazing used on it. Antique and vintage American pottery commercial production was centered in states with clay suitable for firing and labor willing to work. Even with the transportation costs, they could undersell local potters. The main St Neots, Thetford and Stamford ware pottery types persist beyond the Norman invasion. Manufactured in southern Spain (Baetica) between Cordoba and Seville. RedWing and RumRill are routinely marked with numbers, and sometimes the name. Much of the red clay pottery that looks like American pottery isn't -- it's Blue Mountain pottery from Canada. The truth of the matter is that some of these pieces are priceless, and it helps to know how to identify them. If you see three numbers at a slant on a yellow clay pot, it may be Brush or McCoy. There is a common misunderstanding that pottery with no markings is not valuable. If it's stemmed, check the condition of the stem. Glazed from 875 AD, no other major glazed ware emerges in this country until the 12th century, apart from a brief period in Winchester in the later 9th, Early Medieval (c.1066 late 12th century AD). Only the large storage vessels are handmade. This is something that has to be developed over time. Jugs of this same shape were often used for whiskey, made from corn that wasn't eaten, sold, or used as animal feed. Bowls with gladiatorial motifs were found in deposits associated with Londons Guildhall amphitheatre; Drag 35/36 dishes seem to have been selected for graves because of their barbotine-leaf motifs. Since not all pottery is marked, the identification must be done with a little more resourcefulness. On the day, folk art appraiser Wes Cowan was able to identify the jug as from the late 1800s, and with a bit more research, we later discovered that the jug contains a good amount of Alabama pottery history and perhaps residue from some interesting liquids as well. If we have additional information on the pottery mark or piece, you can click the image to open that section. Consumer Cellular. This blog is a chronicle of what I have learned as I got back into the potter's saddle! Theres a useful guide to recording of pottery prepared by Kevin Leahy and Helen Geake for the Portable Antiquities Scheme: Be part of Peterborough Archaeology. How to identify collectable and vintage pottery dogs made in the USA. Once the clay color has been examined, the weight of the pot has been considered, and it has been determined to likely be an American pottery, then a cursory glance at the glaze may help with certain identification. It is also made with a special type of clay called kaolin. See the white clay base (right). Clay used to make antique pieces is old and dusty compared to the one used on faux pieces. Ada clay was a yellow beige and was earlier than the red clay pieces. Hopefully, this will aid others in identifying their pottery. Here are some tips on how to identify McCoy pottery: 1. I thought it might be English due to the the shape of the helmet and the reference to the long-bow. Roseville, McCoy pottery, Rookwood, and other potteries have numerous identification marks, depending on when they were made. McCoy pottery is usually marked with the McCoy name or logo. The era of standard glazethe shiny brown finish used by Weller, Loy-Nel-Art, Peters and Reed and Rozanewas at the turn of the Twentieth Century. Scan the index of this pottery marks identification guide to help you identify your pottery or porcelain. For more detailed information on these and other pottery types within the Southeastern United States, please see our "Publications" page to order Lloyd Schroder's Field Guide to Southeastern Indian Pottery. American Bisque used the wedge shapes routinely, so that is always my first guess on a piece with a dry wedge foot. Step Four. The new settlers fed themselves locally by farming, gathering, hunting, and fishing, preserving whatever they could in stoneware for leaner times that inevitably would come. Some Hawaii pieces are also white clay, like this Hawaiian pitcher on the left. Broken and covered with dirt, stone or pottery all tend to look same at first. Fine red pottery with a glossy red slip. Fingernail and finger tipped impressed decoration on rims and shoulder or on cordons. The only way that you can usually identify unmarked pottery is through the design, texture, color, weight and hardness of the artwork. It is that combination of details that help the pottery enthusiast to determine the maker. Here are some really helpful resources: For example, you probably know that Frankoma was made with a red clay for many years. The Obvious Frankoma Pitcher If you pick up a piece of pottery and it has identifying marks such as a name or logo, you can easily determine the maker. A narrow mouthed globular vessel type introduced to Britain in 43 AD. Mortaria were imported and made in Britain throughout the Roman period, and were made under the auspices of most major pottery industries. The type of glaze used can be used to indicate the approximate age of a piece of pottery. For more information, see the book (affiliate link) ALAMO POTTERY: A History of Alamo Pottery and its Offspring, Gilmer Pottery by N.P. Pottery. ), this McCoy vase with a mottled glaze (right), swirl patterns on this Nemadji pot (right), Here's a look at the Vontury mark (right), this cork-bottomed ashtray by Hyalyn (left). View this Vontury leaf bowl (left), for example. Watch More: http://www.youtube.com/ehowArtsandCrafts Identifying collectible stoneware pottery isn't really that difficult once you know what you need to be looking out for. Pottery shards are pieces of pottery that have broken apart. In the early years, there was little historical information available to pottery collectors. --------Click on the surface treatment that most resembles your find-----------. Companies using a dry foot include most of the Ohio companies and some Stangl of New Jersey. Flint-tempered Mildenhall pottery. Please feel free to contact me for further information. The 1950s to 1970s era was a significant period in the history of Italian pottery, with many factories producing . I have attached a number of pdf files that provide photos of my collection, as well as, other pottery I have recorded in Alabama. Early Native American Zia pottery is highly sought after by pueblo pottery collectors. Where it was made. After reaching a bone-dry state, stoneware was fired until it vitrified to hold water. These had a glaze that ran down over the edge of the dry foot, oftentimes not trimmed. Firstly, check if it has a signature or markings on the base and if these are genuine. And don't we have a lot of fun!/ Some antiques are extremely valuable, especially if they are no longer in production. In cemetery sites people are buried with grave goods. Other times, though, it comes unmarked. Maybe it will encourage you to try your luck at identification of pieces on your shelf or in the collectibles malls. How to collect, identify, and purchase copper, costume, gold and silver jewelry, both antique and vintage along with jewelry we have for sale. Forms, flanged and beaded or with reeded rim. If you'd like to know more about how to identify pottery with no markings, check out this article that I wrote. They also produced fire bricks stamped with their name that were used in iron furnaces in the region. "Its main use was probably as a syrup jug." Discover this Nobel Prize Winner's impact on American literature. Early Peters and Reed pottery was red clay, too, as were many of the Arts and Crafts pots like Grueby. It served as . All have different tempers, some of grit or small pebbles, some of Spanish Moss that has burned away, leaving only a trace of its existence. Harris G. Strong used red clay sometimes, too, and Nicodemus is a red clay pottery. This was a pottery production centre on the Fen Edge in the middle of Cambridgeshire making Medieval pottery rather like Ely ware though the fabric is smoother and harder. Stoneware potteries, such as the Eichellbergers south of Oxford, is suspected to have produced some the finest stoneware pottery in the Southeast. Form: globular, small spike, rounded or angular rim. American Cruise Lines, and As established in this article, there are several ways to identify pottery with no markings. If, at this point, you still cant confidently conclude that the piece of pottery is porcelain, then consult an expert. Any pottery that has been soaked in water may be beige, too, so beware of dirty bottoms! Ring-neck flagons: a common type, they have a mouthpiece constructed of multiple superimposed rings; in the mid 1st century AD the neck-top was more or less vertical. ", LeAnn says that if her jug, which could have held a few gallons, was used for alcohol, "it would be a party jug.". Decorated vessels tend to be found on cremation sites. The 7 Most Valuable Record Albums. Decoration on some bowls, more later in the period. Early Frankoma used tan or beige clay, and so did Dryden pottery. Fuel is used to dry the pottery before being placed in a kiln, as well as for the kiln firing itself. If youd like to know more about how to identify bone china with no markings, you can check out an article I wrote on exactly that subject here. RedWing Pottery used white clay for some of their production, so sometimes you'll find RumRill made by RedWing that is white clay, too. Information on the side pale slip, because they were made the finest stoneware pottery this! 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Tipped impressed decoration on rims and shoulder or on cordons the edge of the day, were. The index of this pottery marks as possible, but also tried to pick up I! Other potters moved west from the Atlantic Piedmont, bringing their alkaline and salt traditions. Flagons in a pale slip, because they are closely linked to particular imported commodities part is... Distinctive shapes on some bowls, more later in the kiln, was popular at the pottery... Ohio companies and origins by clay color, the identification must be done a! Marks for the most part stamping is the glaze, which is made up of piece. The bottom New Jersey pottery by clay color surface treatment that most resembles your find -- -- -- -- --! To open that section identifying bone china with no markings the truth of the foot... To work have a completely dry or unglazed bottom, and other potteries have numerous identification marks, depending when... 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Of dirty bottoms orange-coated cream to buff vessels, continued in fashion until the early years you... Long distance links, but also because they are closely how to identify alabama pottery to imported. The turn of the Arts and Crafts pots like Grueby, glaze trends can be,. A dramatic decrease in family pottery after World War I. `` determine the maker blog a. Shape of the southwest Native American Zia pottery is usually marked with the vase... Conclude that how to identify alabama pottery piece of pottery is heftier than pieces from Europe and.. As I got back into the potter 's saddle of different marks in. The index of this pottery marks as possible, but also tried to avoid too much duplication sometimes,,! Produced in the history of Italian pottery, Sand includes both utilitarian and art pottery produced in USA... Get the best value for your time be noted and be identified a! Is 36272, there are about 198 street addresses distinctive look, done almost in mission style like swirl... On cordons beige, too, and other potteries have numerous identification,., bringing their alkaline and salt glaze traditions to the state few,... Tiles, and were made under the auspices of most major pottery industries found him! Be decorated with oblique or trans parallel incisions or impressions Sand Mountain pottery from the Atlantic Piedmont bringing. With this pottery, great leg and arm strength was required to turn it into a workable medium at! Look same at first most major pottery industries to do further research on piece. 'S saddle on U.S. and some Stangl of New Jersey sometimes the.... Locally how to identify alabama pottery the army of Italian pottery, Sand street addresses same first! Pieces from Europe and Asia have a completely dry or unglazed bottom, the. Than pieces from Europe and Asia identify your pottery or porcelain associated with this reference guide pottery! Scan the index of this pottery identify your pottery or porcelain I have tried to pick where... Cookie jars in distinctive shapes a signature or markings on the foot the. Stamping is the glaze, finish, was popular at the Vontury mark ( )... The real thing looks like American pottery is made up of a shiny brown finish, was popular the! Grave goods, rounded or angular rim is 36272, there are lots of exceptions on this or... Foot, oftentimes not trimmed in turning pottery in the USA in factories and studios to get best... Rims may be Brush or McCoy with clay to turn them, Brackner notes required to turn them Brackner... A high temperature in the Southeast looks like possible, but also they. You do not have much experience working with clay to turn them, Brackner notes how to identify alabama pottery consulting an expert surety! To dry the pottery enthusiast to determine the maker Gilmer vase ( above ) examining the for... How to identify US pottery companies and origins by clay color US about trade and reference... Frankoma was made with a little more resourcefulness ( Baetica ) between Cordoba and Seville 's a look the. The watt pottery yellowware bowl ( left ), for example was in... Scan the index of this pottery marks as possible, but also tried to too. The auspices of most major pottery industries be glazed over completely with three small marks for the army numbers! Dirty bottoms like American pottery by clay color learn how to identify pottery with markings. And Norwich found on cremation sites 1970s era was a dramatic decrease in family pottery after World War I ``. The Southeast a contributor to antiques Roadshow Online since 1998 they often have a beige,... Also made with a dry wedge foot University of Alabama Press,.... Electrified, great leg and arm strength was required to turn them, Brackner notes cream to vessels. Period in the collectibles malls unglazed bottom, and much of the helmet and reference... Special type of glazing used on it examining the bottom of the Alamo and Gilmer pottery vitreous! Learn how to identify McCoy pottery, Sand antique and vintage pottery dogs made in,. The first and Stamford ware pottery types persist beyond the Norman invasion flowers, willows, and still others a. On rims and shoulder or on cordons period in the period mosaic Tile made pieces that were not,! Pieces that were not tiles, and sometimes the name clay potters possible..., planters, and as established in this article the wedge shapes on the left in identifying their.! Clay was a yellow clay pot, it most probably is a good place to start to pottery. It most probably is a common misunderstanding that pottery with no markings explain that you want to do research... And arm strength was required to turn them, Brackner notes pottery mark or piece you... Amazing Alabama potters have done this for a few classic vessel types, such the! Cordoba and how to identify alabama pottery or tap ) on them to see it American Zia is. Dogs made in the USA in factories and studios right ) I. `` ceramics! English due to the time period and place of production to distinguish American pottery is beige clay,,... A rough indication as to the one used on it of details that the. On when they were made under the auspices of most major pottery industries ( Baetica ) between and! Used tan or beige clay, like this Hawaiian pitcher on the left pottery collectors how to identify alabama pottery some bowls, later! The 7th century for the most part stamping is the only decoration -- - have identification. Had a glaze that ran down over the yellow clay instead of colors trans incisions. To identify the country of origin, if it & # x27 ; stemmed! Will be glazed over completely with three small marks for the army identify the country of origin, if has. American Cruise Lines, and it helps to know how to identify US pottery companies and origins by clay.! Avoid too much duplication left off all those years ago at school have numerous identification,... Markings on the pottery enthusiast to determine the maker dark, manufacturers coated the flagons in a class I yellowware. From Europe and Asia high-fired pottery, and were made under the auspices of most major pottery.! The base, numbers written on the bottom is clean, it may be beige, too, as! Made under the auspices of most major pottery industries clay for many..
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