Rare J. S. WADSWORTH / GOVERNOR / OF NY STATE Stoneware Jar

March 24, 2018 Stoneware Auction

Lot #: 94

Price Realized: $2,832.00

($2,400 hammer, plus 18% buyer's premium)

PLEASE NOTE: This result is 6 years old, and the American ceramics market frequently changes. Additionally, small nuances of color, condition, shape, etc. can mean huge differences in price. If you're interested in having us sell a similar item for you, please contact us here.

March 24, 2018 Auction Catalog

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Very Rare One-and-a-Half-Gallon Cobalt-Decorated Stoneware Jar, Inscribed "J.S. WADSWORTH / GOVERNOR / of NY State", New York State origin, circa 1862, ovoid jar with tooled shoulder, semi-rounded rim, and applied lug handles, decorated with the large cobalt inscription, "J.S. WADSWORTH / GOVERNOR / of NY State". Cobalt highlight to capacity mark. The inscription on this jar commemorates Union Civil War General, James S. Wadsworth (1807-1864), who was the Republican nominee for governor of New York against antiwar Democrat, Horatio Seymour. Wadsworth, however, would not relinquish his military duty to campaign for this position, and lost the election. He was shot in the head by Confederates in the Battle of the Wilderness in Spotsylvania County, VA, on May 6, 1864, and died two days later in a Confederate field hospital. Wadsworth was posthumously promoted to a rank of Brevet Major General, and was buried at Temple Hill Cemetery in Geneseo, NY. This jar, which commemorates Wadsworth's candidacy, has strong Civil War, political, and American historical appeal, while maintaining its integrity as a decorative stoneware object in its large brushed cobalt letters and pleasing ovoid form. Very nice condition with a small chip to one handle, a tiny nick and light wear to opposite handle, a 2 3/4" hairline from rim on reverse, and a 1 1/8" in-the-firing flake to bottom edge on front.