Rookwood, Art Pottery Works Spotlighted In Curated Auction from Toomey & Co
by Kate Nixon
The appeal of Rookwood pottery will be put on display during Keramics & Rookwood: American & European Art Pottery, a special curated auction from Toomey & Co Auctioneers.
This special 412 lot auction, curated by Toomey & Co’s Riley Humler, will highlight the wide variety of creative works of Rookwood Pottery, many of them early examples. Works by founder Maria Longworth Nichols Storer, Kataro Shirayamadani, Carol Schmidt, Harriet E. Wilcox, Sara Sax and other important artists will appear in the June 17th auction.
Notable Rookwood examples include an early earthenware vase by Maria Longworth with dragons and bats, a number of items by Shirayamadani including a table lamp with a carved base with floral decoration and a Tiffany Studios Acorn shade, Iris glaze drinks set with pitcher and six cups, a large Iris glaze landscape vase, a Vellum glaze vase with mushrooms, and a Vellum glaze plaque showing Venetian sailing vessels all from Carl Schmidt, Harriet E. Wilcox ’s Painted Mat vase with Japanese irises among many other colorful examples.
While a number of Rookwood pieces will be in the spotlight, there will be two works from Grueby pottery, namely Marie A Seaman’s two-color vase with carved trefoil flowers and overlapping leaves and Eva Russell’s large vase with carved leaf and flower decoration. Newcomb College is represented with Irene Borden Keep’s Narcissus Paperwhites vase and Marie de Hoa LeBlanc’s Iris and Sara Bloom Levy’s Daffofil while Teco Pottery vases will be present in the form of examples from W.B. Mundie and Fritz Albert. Examples from Roseville Pottery round out the selections.
In addition to important works, this auction will also feature works in the more affordable ranges. A number of Roseville Pottery works, including a Matt Green umbrella stand with Asiatic lilies embossed on each of eight panels, a Windsor two-handled earthenware vase with training vines, a sunflower vase, and an early Velmoss earthenware vase with embossed leaves in two colors, have estimates in the $200 to $500 range.
Here are our items of note we’ll be keeping our eyes on this Thursday:
*All images and descriptions courtesy of Toomey & Co Auctioneers.
Marie de Hoa LeBlanc (1874-1954) for Newcomb College Iris vase
New Orleans, Louisiana, 1903 (date code Z 47)
high glazed ceramic
impressed NC, W for white clay and incised MHLeB (artist’s initials)
base also incised JM by the potter, Joseph Fortune Meyer (1848-1931)
Mesures 4 1/4″dia x 6 7/16″h
Estimate $4,000-6,000
Condition Report: Faint overall crazing. Good color. No chips, cracks or repairs.
Marie A. Seaman for Grueby fine two-color vase with carved trefoil flowers and overlapping leaves
Boston, Massachusetts, circa 1903
matte green and yellow glazed ceramic
impressed factory marks and incised artist’s initials
Measures 8 1/2″dia x 12 3/4″h
Estimate $15,000-25,000
Condition Report: Three small glaze nicks to undersides of leaves. Very minor stilt pull to underside.
Roseville Pottery Co. Imperial II floor vase in green, shape number 744-19
Zanesville, Ohio, circa 1924
semi-gloss ceramic
shape number in orange grease pencil
Measures 12 1/2″dia x 19 3/8″h
Estimate $2,000-3,000
Condition Report: Uncrazed. Great glaze interaction.
Arthur Eugene Baggs (1886-1947) at Ohio State University handthrown ovoid earthenware vase in copper blue glaze
Columbus, Ohio, 1935
matte glazed ceramic
painted signature and date, handwritten paper label “#1 NFS Copper Blue vase Arthur E. Baggs Hughes Hall O.S.U.”
Measures 6 3/4″dia x 10 1/2″h
Estimate $1,500-2,500
Condition Report: Excellent original condition.
Maria Longworth Nichols Storer (1849-1932) for Rookwood Pottery earthenware vase with a three-toed dragon, flying bats and fired-on gold decoration
Cincinnati, Ohio, circa 1880
high glazed ceramic
incised “Rookwoob [sic] Pottery Cin Ohio, M.L.N”
Measures 12 1/2″dia x 13″h
Catalog note: please visit toomeyco.com for the full history behind this product.
Estimate $8,000-12,000
Condition Report: Faint crazing and a tight line at the rim corresponding to a molding seam, most likely a stress separation.
Kataro Shirayamadani (1865-1948) for Rookwood Pottery / Tiffany Studios table lamp: Acorn shade on a carved base with brightly colored floral decoration, shape number 645Z
Cincinnati, Ohio, 1903 (base); New York, New York (shade)
matte glazed ceramic, leaded slag glass
base with impressed factory marks, incised artist’s cypher, original Rookwood label from 1904 St. Louis Louisiana Purchase Exposition and partial paper label from a retailer in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; shade with stamped marks
Measures overall: 14″dia x 21 1/4″h; base only: 7 3/4″dia x 14 1/4″h
Estimate $8,000-12,000
Condition Report: Tight firing line at base. Small firing separation on one leg.
Sara Sax (1870-1949) for Rookwood Pottery fine porcelain French Red glaze vase with fuchsia decoration, shape number 2191
Cincinnati, Ohio, 1922
high and matte glazed ceramic
impressed factory marks and artist’s monogram
Measures 3 5/8″dia x 5 1/8″h
Catalog Note: please see toomeyco.com for the history behind this piece.
Estimate $5,000-7,000
Condition Report: Uncrazed.
To see the whole catalog of curated items being offered, visit toomeyco.com.