Studio Pottery: Small Salt Crock Blue Floral

Salt-glazed stoneware with cobalt blue hand-painted decoration is one of the oldest and most recognisable traditions in American folk pottery, dating back to the 18th century. Colonial-era potters used cobalt oxide — one of the few pigments that could withstand the extreme temperatures of salt glazing — to decorate crocks, jugs, and storage vessels with flowers, birds, and folk motifs. By the 1970s, potteries like Williamsburg Pottery in Virginia were producing affordable reproductions of this style for the tourist and gift market, keeping the tradition alive for a new generation of collectors.