Lynn’s eBay ezine Volume III, issue number 44

‘Identifying American Pottery – Look at the Bottom! part II‘

by Linda Richard, eBay ID cajunc, guest columnist for The Queen of Auctions

(You can find the first half of this article in ezine volume 3, number 42, here.)

THE FOOT

The shape, glazing and markings of the “foot” or base surface of the piece which makes contact with a supporting surface (ie – table or shelf) can be as revealing as the color and texture of the clay.

Many pieces of pottery have a dry rim around the bottom edge, known as a dry foot. See figure 18.

figure 18

Companies using a dry foot include most of the Ohio companies and some Stangl of New Jersey.

Several companies used stilts for glazing pottery, and the bottom will be glazed over completely with three small marks for the stilts. Haeger and Royal Haeger are often glazed like this. See figure 21.

figure 21

There are also some California potters who used stilts or firing pins for most of their glazing. Metlox was one California pottery using firing pins. See figure 22.

Vohann is another example of a glazed bottom with firing pins. Figure 23.

figure 23

RedWing (also Rumrill ) and Stangl used stilts for some of their ware lines. See figure 24.

figure 24

Peters and Reed often has three stilt marks, too, and the old pieces show red clay under the glaze. SO, if you see three little flaws on a glazed bottom, these are not damage–they are stilt marks or firing pin marks used for the firing process. Examining the bottom for stilt marks may reveal some numbers that may help with identification, too.

THE NUMBERS

For many years, three numbers were used to identify many of the SHAPES for American pottery. Some companies only used two numbers for some of the shapes, and some used four. These are numbers that are in the mold, not handwritten. RedWing and RumRill are routinely marked with numbers, and sometimes the name. Some of the pieces were also marked with a letter, a dash, then a number – so items marked similar to M-3333 are often Redwing (Murphy Era).

If you see three numbers at a slant on a yellow clay pot, it may be Brush or McCoy. See Figure 25.

figure 25

Three square numbers on a white pottery bottom may be Alamo Pottery, made in San Antonio, Texas from about 1946-1952, or it may be Gilmer, another Texas pottery in business for much longer. Figure 26.

figure 26

Remember to look at Camark and Niloak, too, because they used a white clay for much of their production. Note the difference, though. Alamo and Gilmer often have a completely unglazed bottom, while Camark and Niloak may have just a dry foot. Figure 27.

figure 27

The way the numbers are written, the style of number and even the number of numbers are all significant in determining the maker of a piece of pottery. It is that combination of details that helps the pottery enthusiast to determine the maker.

THE GLAZE

This article is about the identification of American pottery by the bottom, and it is not my intent to vary from that topic much, but it is difficult to look at the bottom and not see the top—so a comment on glaze seems essential here. 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.

The glazes in pottery went with fashion of the day, and trends can be noted, although there are lots of exceptions. The era of standard glaze–the shiny brown finish used by Weller, Loy-Nel-Art, Peters and Reed and Rozane–was at the turn of the Twentieth Century. Great detail in hand-painting and hand-work including sgraffito with pastels, predominated the next 15 years or so. Think Rookwood and Newcomb. By 1915, much American pottery was matte finish and early Art Deco shapes. This continued through the 1920’s. Some American potteries went back to shiny glazes in the late 1930s and 1950s, and through the 1960s for many of the companies. Much of the newer Roseville, not reproduction but 1960s era production, was a shiny glaze, but this started as early as 1937 with Ivory II production. Roseville, for one, had both shiny and matte patterns side by side for many years. By 1947, most of their lines had gone to shiny glaze. The same general dating can be used for Hull, Weller, and other American companies of the first half of the Twentieth Century. In general, shiny glaze has not met with the same favor by collectors as the matte glaze pieces. This is probably most evident in Van Briggle and Rookwood. The shiny pieces do not sell for the premium prices of matte glaze pieces.

Some companies typically made certain colors and styles of glazes. Winart Pottery made a drip glaze that identifies much of their wares. See figure 28.

figure 28

Guppys Island Ware of California used a drip glaze. See figure 29.

figure 29

Drip glazes were also common in Fulper, Stangl, and Zanesville pottery. Morton pottery made drip glaze pots and figurines, and it is becoming collectible.

Crystalline glazes were done in early Camark and early Haeger. See figure 30.

figure 30

There are some contemporary studio potters doing glazes with large crystal formations in the glaze – but these early production works were small crystals. See figure 31.

figure 31

Lava or foam glazes were common in VanBriggle and Haeger – the most recognized being Bennington Brown Foam by Haeger. These are a type of drip glaze, but are bubbled at the top and do not form the “drips” of drip glazes.

Mottled glazes were most often made by Ohio potters–Burley-Winter, McCoy and Zanesville come to mind. Figure 32.

figure 32

OTHER IDENTIFIERS

Camark used a cutting tool that left what I call “saw marks” on the dry foot of their pots.

I have been able to identify several Camark pieces instantly by the saw marks. See figure 33.

figure 33

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. Some Weller has a distinctive three-part seam at the bottom. See figure 35.

figure 35

Purinton may have a seam with an unglazed foot. See figure 36.

figure 36

Some Dryden has a flat unglazed bottom, and that, along with the sandy clay helps identify older Dryden, even if the mark is not readable.

Vitreous china was made by many of the American potters, and it is best known as restaurant ware. It is usually white clay with a very hard, high-fired finish. Much of the Alamo and Gilmer pottery is vitreous, pottery fired at a high temperature in the kiln. Mosaic also did vitreous with a white or sandy clay and hard shiny glaze. This pottery is difficult to chip or break, and feels like bathtub porcelain. It is usually very heavy, almost the weight of stoneware.

Vontury of New Jersey was also high-fired pottery, and much of the Vontury is done in pastels with impressionistic nature scenes. Figure 37.

figure 37

Most Vontury is marked, but the name is difficult to read unless you know what it should be. See figure 38.

figure 38

Handles were often elaborate on Fulper and Stangl and sometimes Dryden and Morton. Much of the Floraline McCoy line was very plain, Art Deco style pottery, made for the florist trade. Hyalyn also made Deco style pieces, and often they had cork bottoms. See figure 39.

figure 39

What I call “sloppy” pots were made by Burley-Winter, Zanesville and sometimes McCoy. These had a glaze that ran down over the edge of the dry foot, oftentimes not trimmed.

VanBriggle did some of these, too, but most of the VanBriggle pottery is marked and not difficult to identify. Figure 40.

figure 40

CONCLUSION

When looking at a piece of pottery, learning to combine the information here will be the most helpful. Check the weight, then the bottom. Check the color, then the design of the bottom – whether a dry foot, flat bottom, wedged base, ridged bottom or stilts. Then, identify the piece by style, glaze, or some other identifier. Confirm your conclusion by checking in a book or the internet. Once you have done this for a few years, you will develop confidence in your skill.

This is just a lightweight review for identification of unmarked American Pottery. Maybe it will encourage you to try your luck at identification of pieces on your shelf or in the collectibles malls. It may also give some insight into why some people pick up pottery and check out the bottom. They aren’t dusting the shop, or emptying the spiders (or crickets in Texas). They are looking under the pot for answers!

Happy hunting for American Pottery!

About the Author: Linda H. Richard (eBay ID cajunc) has been collecting American Pottery for twenty years, and has been an ISA Appraiser for ten years. She is currently pursuing other interests and is not an active appraiser with the International Society of Appraisers. She has contributed to several books and articles. Her husband, Darrell, does the photography and design work for her pursuits.