Pitcher
MakerMade by
Sidney Risley
(American, died 1875)
Date1835-1865
MediumWheel-thrown stoneware with a salt glaze, brown slip glaze, and cobalt blue decoration
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (height x width including handle x depth): 6 1/2 x 12 1/2 x 10in. (16.5 x 31.8 x 25.4cm)
ClassificationsCeramics
Credit LineGift of the estate of Ruth S. Cloyes
DescriptionRound, two gallon, yellow stoneware pitcher with a salt glaze on the exterior and a brown slip glaze, or Albany-type glaze, on the interior. The pitcher has a flat base and sides that swell gently, then narrow just below the middle and continue to the rim. An s-shaped molding circles the pitcher about an inch below the rim. One side of the rim has been pinched together to form a spout; opposite this, a pulled strap handle connects the rim with the middle of the pitcher. Below the spout, opposite the rim, is an impressed mark, "S RISLEY/ NORWICH/ 2". The mark is surrounded by thickly-applied, hand-painted cobalt blue decoration. Above is a three-petal flower, with longer branchs and leaves painted in a vertical arrangement below the mark. The thickest portions of the cobalt blue bubbled during the manufacturing process or flaked off over time. There is one minor indentation in the pitcher to the lower right of the mark and design. A three- or four-inch-long crack is located only on the inside of the pitcher, to the left of the spout.
Object number1980.32.0
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