Brief description |
Vase, Pauline Pottery, Edgerton, probably ca. 1888-1894. |
Object name |
Vase |
Maker |
Pauline Pottery, 1883-1909 |
Date |
1888-1894 |
Dimensions |
11 3/4"H x 7" diam. |
Materials and techniques |
Molded earthenware; Hand-painted underglaze; Gilt overglaze; Incised and stippled ornament |
Marks |
Stamped Pauline Pottery crown and "TRADEMARK" |
Original location |
Edgerton, Rock County, Wisconsin |
Current location |
Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin |
Description |
Molded earthenware vase with round body and long, narrow neck. Incised with a leafy curving pattern highlighted with gilt. Stippling in open areas. Underglazed ground transitions from red-brown at base to dark green. Two large chips in rim. |
History |
The Pauline Pottery was a commercial art pottery works established by Pauline Jacobus in Chicago in 1883. In 1888, Jacobus and her husband Oscar relocated the company to Edgerton, Wisconsin in order to gain access to the high-quality cream-colored earthenware clay beds found in the area. In Edgerton, Oscar managed the production of porous earthenware cups for electric batteries (the pottery's primary income generator) while Pauline worked with a staff of women decorators to create ornamental wares decorated with hand-painted underglaze. Faced with financial difficulties after the death of Oscar Jacobus, the pottery was forced to close in 1894. In 1902, Pauline Jacobus reopened the Pauline Pottery on a smaller scale, operating the company from her own home until her retirement in 1909. |
Sources |
Maurice Montgomery, Edgerton's History in Clay: Pauline Pottery to Pickard China (2001); Ori-Anne Pagel, Pauline Pottery: A Pictorial Supplement to 'Edgerton's History in Clay' (Edgerton, Wisconsin: Arts Council of Edgerton, 2003); Emily Pfotenhauer, "Art Pottery in Edgerton: History and Resources" Wisconsin Object (accessed March 5, 2008): http://wisconsinobject.wordpress.com/2008/03/05/art-pottery-in-edgerton-history-and-resources |
Related objects |
A pitcher in the collection of the Wisconsin Historical Museum features similar incised and gilded decoration (object # 1956.4019): http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/u?/wda,1002 |
Owner |
Wisconsin Historical Museum |
Object # |
1956.4016 |
Rights |
(c) 2007 by the Wisconsin Historical Society. Contact the owner for more information. http://wisconsinhistory.org/museum/collections/dom_life.asp |
Digital collection |
Wisconsin Decorative Arts Database |
Digital identifier |
WHS056 |
Digital format |
image/jpeg |
Type |
Physical object |
Keywords |
Ceramics; Pottery; Earthenware; Art pottery; Vase; Vessel (container); Container (receptacle); Furnishings and equipment; Household Accessory |
Date digitized |
2008-03-06 |
Date modified |
2009-02-27 |