Extremely Rare "MALAGA WINE" Cooler, Stamped "L. NORTON / BENNINGTON, VT" c1828-33

Fall 2022 Stoneware Auction

Lot #: 249

Price Realized: $1,140.00

($950 hammer, plus 20% buyer's premium)

PLEASE NOTE: This result is 2 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.

Fall 2022 Auction Catalog

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Extremely Rare Cobalt-Decorated Stoneware "MALAGA WINE" Cooler, Stamped "L. NORTON. / BENNINGTON. V.T," circa 1828-1833, approximately four-gallon, keg-form cooler with raised banding and circular bunghole, the shoulder impressed with the cobalt-highlighted beverage name, "MALAGA / WINE," the midsection with cobalt-highlighted L. Norton maker's mark including an unusual arched stamp for the town name, "BENNINGTON." Stylized foliate motif below. Malaga wine is a sweet wine produced in the city of Malaga, Spain. Norton stoneware bearing any sort of marking indicating a piece's specific use is highly unusual. This work is only the second Norton cooler specifically marked for wine that we have seen. The other is the iconic jug-form cooler in the Bennington Museum, made after Luman Preston Norton's graduation from college, which features two cobalt snakes supporting a fruit basket and an applied seal bearing the words, "IN VINO VERITAS" (In Wine There Is Truth). Very nice condition. Front of rim with a 1 1/4" flake, a 1/2" flake, and a minor U-shaped surface line. A small in-the-firing chip to top of rim. Interior of bunghole with a small chip, some flaking, and minor roughness. A small chip to underside of cooler along edge. Light staining around base area. H 14 1/2".