Char Dish
Dateca. 1785
MediumLead-glazed earthenware (china glaze / pearlware)
DimensionsOH: 1 1/2"; OD: 8 3/4" (at foot).
Credit LineGift of Bruce and Barbara McRitchie
Object number2023-53
DescriptionChar dish or char pot: squat cylindrical body with molded base and flat bottom; painted under the glaze in high temperature colors of black, teal green, and yellow with five fish "swimming" clockwise around the exterior of the object.Label TextDishes for potted fish and meat were called “potting pots” in the 18th and 19th centuries and held a variety of fish, fowl, and meats made into pastes and frequently capped with clarified butter to seal them. While char pots in tin-glazed earthenware come to mind for most collectors and ceramic scholars, the form persisted in a variety of materials including creamware, pearlware, and even later white ware.
ProvenanceFormerly in the collection of Bruce and Barbara McRitchie (Williamsburg, VA) who acquired the piece February 1, 2002, from Robert Eric French Antiques and Americana (Scarborough, ME). In April 2023, the McRitchies gave the piece to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (Williamsburg, VA).
