Platter

MakerManufactured by John & William Ridgway (English, 1814 - 1830)

After a work byAfter an engraving by Asaph Willard (1786 - 1880)

Dateabout 1825

MediumMold-formed buff-colored earthenware with a blue-tinted glaze and underglaze cobalt blue decoration

DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (width x depth): 15 5/8 x 11 1/2in. (39.7 x 29.2cm)

ClassificationsCeramics

Credit LineMuseum purchase

Object number1979.13.3

DescriptionOval platter of buff-colored earthenware with a blue-tinted glaze, a type of ceramic known as pearlware. The oval platter has an undulating, lightly ribbed rim. It is decorated with an underglaze cobalt blue transfer-printed border and pattern, titled, "Deaf & Dumb Asylum, Hartford, Con." on the back. The pattern, printed in the center of the platter, shows a long, rectangular, three-story building with a pediment over a small door that is flanked by two pilasters on each side. Seven chimneys are visible on the roof of the building. There is a low fence to the left, and a small building to the right of the building. A tree in the right foreground bends over the scene. The pattern is first surrounded by a narrow border of white semi-circles, then the platter's main border is printed at the rim. This border consists of varied flowers, each separated from the other by a semi-circular line of scrolled leaves. There is a final narrow border of small white diamonds lined up along the outer edge of the rim. There are many light scratches on the top surface of the platter. Three stilt marks are visible on each side, and there are three chips on the foot of the platter.

NotesSource Note: The source for this view of the Deaf and Dumb Asylum in Hartford is an engraving by Asaph Willard (1786-1880), who worked in Hartford after 1818. The engraving is titled, "View of the Asylum for Deaf & Dumb Persons, Hartford, Con." This view was copied by John Warner Barber for publication in "Connecticut Historical Collections," 1836. The Staffordshire firms of J. & W. Ridgway and Ralph Stevenson produced ceramics with this pattern.

Status

Not on view