Images(2)

Dish

Dateca. 1790

OriginAmerica, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

MediumLead-glazed earthenware

DimensionsOverall: 2 5/8 x Diameter: 15 3/4in. (6.7 x 40cm)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number2008.900.2

DescriptionSlip-decorated red earthenware dish with a coggled rim edge. The front of the dish ornamented in cream slip decoration comprised of two bands of combed lines on either side of two squiggled lines. Two bands of wavy lines on either side of the dish complete the decorative scheme. Five daubes of copper green ornament the dish, one on either side and three in a line down the middle.
Label TextThe majority of slip-decorated earthenware used in colonial America is thought to have come from England and certainly the archaeological evidence does support this conclusion. It is known that utilitarian wares were produced in most regions and used locally. However, more recent archaeological excavations have established that some pottery industries were better established than was previously thought. Philadelphia potteries were making dishes like this in large quantities by the middle of the eighteenth century and selling them up and down the East Coast. Advertised as "Philadelphia Earthenwares" they have been found in excavations from the Fortress of Louisbourg in Nova Scotia to St. Augustine, Florida. This dish, made in Philadelphia, is an excellent example of the work most commonly associated with this important pottery center.
ProvenanceNortheast Auctions, Portsmouth, New Hampshire (August 2, 2008, Lot 882)