Monumental Stoneware Butter Crock with Elaborate Cobalt Floral Decoration, Stamped "S. CLAYTON & SONS / BUTTER PACKERS / BALTIMORE," attributed to William Linton, Baltimore, MD, circa 1845, low-walled, wide-bodied crock with squared rim and arched tab handles, brush-decorated with fan-shaped flowers flanking impressed and cobalt-highlighted advertising for "S. CLAYTON & SONS / BUTTER PACKERS / BALTIMORE." Reverse decorated with three additional fan-shaped floral motifs descending from the rim. Cobalt highlights to handle terminals. One handle with original piercing formed prior to firing. This oversized piece with large-fonted advertising was likely made for display in the storefront of Samuel Clayton & Sons' Baltimore Butter Depot at No. 3 Lombard Street. The font used, which would be clearly visible by passersby, measures nearly 3/4" tall. This work is extraordinary on a number of levels, including its size, form, subject matter, elaborate decoration, and large-sized stamp. A large body of surviving stoneware jugs, and occasionally other forms, with impressed advertising have created their own collecting genre within the larger genre of Baltimore stoneware. This work is perhaps the finest example of them all. Literature: Illustrated and discussed in Kille, "Distinguishing Marks and Flowering Designs: Baltimore's Utilitarian Stoneware Industry," p. 123, fig. 59. A network of thin cracks in underside, some of which extend to rim of crock in front and reverse. A few raised air pockets in clay. A large flake to one handle. A small rim chip. H 9" ; Diam. 14 1/2".
