Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America [Hardcover]

Janine E. Skerry (Author), Suzanne Findlen Hood (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 10, 2009

Imported from Germany and England and domestically made, salt-glazed stoneware vessels were an integral part of daily life in America from the time of European settlement until the dawn of the last century. Because it is impervious to the harmful effects of highly saline or acidic solutions, salt-glazed stoneware was uniquely well suited for use in preparing and storing a wide range of liquids and foodstuffs. Particularly in the first half of the seventeenth century, before the development of the British green glass bottle industry, stoneware was the only appropriate material for foods preserved by pickling or brining. Even after glass bottles became prevalent, stoneware's durability made it the material of choice for both domestic and tavern use.

Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America chronicles the traditions of stoneware imported from England and Germany as well as the often overlooked work of American potters during the eighteenth century. Drawing on archaeological and documentary sources, and featuring objects drawn from Colonial Williamsburg's holdings as well as from dozens of public and private collections, the book provides an invaluable overview of the goods found in early America.

More than 300 photos present the wide range of early American stoneware. The book's broad scope makes Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America an essential reference for archaeologists, curators, and collectors, and its accessible style will appeal to specialists and nonspecialists alike.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The authors' long study of the subject has resulted in a handsome and highly informative compendium on all things stoneware relating to early America, just as the title promises. . . . All told, Salt-Glazed Stoneware in Early America belongs in the lap of anyone interested in ceramics and early American material history."--Maine Antique Digest

"[Skerry and Hood] offer sweeping coverage of the fascinating early development of [salt-glazed stoneware] in America. Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America . . . is a solid reference further enhanced with 300 richly colored illustrations."--The Auction Exchange and Collectors News

"Skerry and Hood have crafted an innovative and useful volume documenting the American colonies' consumption of stoneware from the early 17th century until the early 19th century, when American production took over. Relying on period documents, surviving objects in US and foreign collections, and the evidence of archaeology, the authors trace two centuries of changing patterns of importation, style, form, and use. Recommended."--Choice

"A winner that is destined to be the standard reference for years to come. This book is well-researched, well-written, wonderfully illustrated, and incredibly useful." --Journal of Middle Atlantic Archaeology

Review

"A must-have volume for all ceramic enthusiasts, Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America is a long-overdue tribute to the often-neglected but indispensable role that stoneware played in the American context. Janine E. Skerry and Suzanne Findlen Hood's comprehensive research celebrates the functional, durable, and often sublimely beautiful character of stoneware." (Robert Hunter, editor, Ceramics in America )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 292 pages
• Publisher: UPNE/Colonial Williamsburg (November 10, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584658207
• ISBN-13: 978-1584658207
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 9.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #918,074 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Salt-Glazed Stoneware in Early America, December 19, 2009

By 

Harry Arthur Root "ceramics hound" (Illinois) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America (Hardcover)

A publishing long awaited but worth every day of the wait. A definitive and carefully researched publication that ties together the importance of both German and English salt glazed pottry imported into the colonies of early America. Carefully illustrated and clealy written; a treasure for the cermaics student.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding, comprehensive resource for everyone interested in 18th century American lifeways, April 24, 2010

By 

Doug Rader (Raleigh, North Carolina) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America (Hardcover)

This beautiful and authoritative work provides arguably the best available, comprehensive presentation covering stonewares as they appeared in early American homes, both at the time and now as reflected from American archaeological contexts up to the time of the Revolution (i.e. the colonial period in early America). As an amateur archaeologist, historian and collector of ceramics that match those I find on early American sites, I can attest that this volume covers -- and covers extraordinarily well -- the array of materials likely to be found on sites from this period. I especially like the fact that the volume presents not just the spectacular materials found in museums, but those likely to have been used every day, broken and disposed of . . . the stuff of everyday life at the time.

Congratulations to Janine Skerry and Suzanne Findlen Hood -- but also to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation -- for producing such an interesting and useful volume. Congratulations also to Angelika Ruth Kuettner for her excellent appendix on salt-glazed stoneware plate patterns -- an outstanding treatment of the subject!

16 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars NOT For Stoneware Collectors, February 10, 2010

By 

M. B. Kaye (Florida) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Salt-glazed Stoneware in Early America (Hardcover)

I am a collector of 18th and 19th century blue decorated and incised AMERICAN stoneware. Any "stoneware collector" like me collects forms like crocks, jugs, butter churns, pitchers, and various specialty items like banks, figures, etc. I bought the book because I expected to see a significant amount of information and photos devoted to early stoneware made in NYC, Philadelphia, NJ, etc. -- where stoneware began in the Colonies. What I got was a book with 90% of the material devoted to discussion of the EUROPEAN origins of stoneware and mostly stoneware I would call dishes and teapots and tableware. I was totally disappointed in the book and returned it for a full refund. This is NOT a book for collectors of AMERICAN stoneware collectors -- the title is a complete misrepresentation.