Exceptional E. & L. P. NORTON / BENNINGTON, VT Stoneware Jug w/ Elaborate Pecking Chicken

Fall 2023 Stoneware Auction

Lot #: 73

Price Realized: $14,400.00

($12,000 hammer, plus 20% buyer's premium)

PLEASE NOTE: The American ceramics market frequently changes, often dramatically. 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.

Auction Highlight: Fall 2023 Auction | New England Stoneware | Norton Pottery | Vermont Stoneware

Fall 2023 Auction Catalog

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Outstanding Two-Gallon Stoneware Jar with Extravagant Cobalt Chicken Pecking Corn Decoration, Stamped "E & L P NORTON / BENNINGTON, VT," circa 1860, cylindrical form with semi-squared spout, decorated with a large slip-trailed design of a chicken pecking kernels of corn from a detailed ground accented with shrubs and a spotted trail. The chicken pecking corn motif of Edward and Luman P. Norton is among the rarest and most desirable renditions of this design produced with any regularity in the American stoneware tradition. Differing from earlier Norton pottery depictions of a chicken, those produced during this period present the bird with a plump body, dramatic downward-facing attitude, and profuse feather detail. This example includes heavy spotting to the wing, leaving only the head free of cobalt application. Cobalt highlights to the maker's mark and capacity mark. A particularly fine example, featuring excellent color and coverage of the design over the vessel's front. A thin circular crack around edge of underside, including a 7" vertical crack ascending from it on side of jug. In-the-firing mottling to clay on reverse. H 13 3/4".