Antique Ovoid Stoneware Salt Glazed Jug

  
Around 1860, stoneware makers began using the cylinder shape. Not only is this an early jug, it also was given an interesting glaze treatment, with the upper portion a warm brown, as though it were dipped, and the lower part left the natural clay color. The jug retains what appears to be its original cork, whittled to fit snugly in the mouth.

The strap handle was pulled partly from the neck and partly from the mouth. It's attached to the body with a thumbprint. The jug stands 11 1/2 inches tall to the top of the mouth, measures about 8 inches across at the belly (the circumference there is 25 inches) and the base is 4 1/2 inches in diameter. This jug weighs 6 pounds and is in very good condition. There is a hairline at the base of the handle and one at the neck; there are glaze pops, salt particles and pebble pits, but no cracks and no chips, surprisingly not even around the mouth.

Any surface roughness was in the clay and/or happened in the kiln. This stoneware jug is a utilitarian piece nearly two hundred years old that is a wonderful display item, alone or in a collection.