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Antique Stoneware
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Stoneware was a later development from Earthenware, of which the most famous is
Redware, and is more durable,
harder, and impervious to liquids. That hardness and ability to hold liquids is both
a result of the type of clay used and the higher firing temperature than earthenware.
It was increasingly important to be able to have a container that wouldn’t absorb
liquid as populations grew and became more separate from towns and villages where
liquid supplies could be purchased more easily. It took the development of kilns that
could reach higher temperatures than required by Earthenware to develop Stoneware.
Like porcelain, it is thought that Stoneware was first produced in China where higher
temperature kilns were available before they were in Europe. Some Stoneware was
decorated with a process called “etching”. In this etching process, a design, some
quite intricate, was etched into the piece and then colored with Cobalt before firing
and glazing. The most popular glaze used on Stoneware was a salt glaze. Salt glazed
Stoneware replaced much of the Redware in use in the United States from the latter
part of the eighteenth century onward. The higher firing temperature of Stoneware
meant, also, that it could be used in ovens, to bake bread and pastry, without the
probabality of cracking as much Earthenware would. Many quality antiques survive from
that period, although since the pieces were used in the homes and ranches of the time
most reflect some wear.
Salt glazing is a process where salt is introduced into the kiln during the firing
process when the temperature gets to about 1,500° F. The salt reacts to the heat and
becomes a vapor, which adheres to the surface of the clay pieces. As the temperature
rises to the standard firing for stoneware of about 2,100° F, the salt vapor produces
a hard finish to the clay somewhat resembling the texture of an orange peel with a
coating of small “bumps” on the surface of the vessel. As the piece cools, a gray to
brown color with a slight shine on the “bumps” typifies Stoneware. Sometimes the
settling of wood ash on the Stoneware gives a geen or yellow overtone to the basic
dark colors. This process helped the Stoneware jug or container hold liquids without
the seepage of Redware or other types of Earthenware. Salt glazing was less expensive
and easier to accomplish than silica glazing which was another factor contributing to
its popularity among the citizens of Europe and Colonial America. Money was very scarce
in those times, and finding a product that was stronger and more versitile, with
little, if any, added cost fueled the attractiveness of Stoneware. This textured
surfaces and lack of decoration produced by salt glazing further helps the collector
to distinquish Stoneware from other Earthenware pieces of the same time period. While
jugs and liquid containers account for a majority of Stoneware pieces, there are many
pie plates, loaf pans for bread, and so-called “Turkish Hats” (which we call a Bundt
pan) for cakes still available.
Browse stoneware antiques online
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