Daniel Seagle (Lincoln County, NC, 1805-1867), Five Gallon Storage Jar

Circa 1850, ovoid stoneware jar with glossy green brown alkaline glaze, having a thin, slightly rolled rim and wide arched dual lug handles, featuring dark glaze runs from the shoulder and handle, one handle stamped "DS" within a rectangular reserve, the opposing handle is impressed with "5" denoting capacity.


14 1/2 x 12 x 12 in.

Daniel Seagle is the earliest known Catawba Valley potter and began making his pieces in the early 19th century for neighbors as utilitarian works. Seagle used the alkaline glaze, comprised of wood ash, silica in the form of sand or powdered glass, and clay, with water to control viscosity. It was fired to 2500 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. Seagle’s glossy, runny, greenish glaze has been identified with Catawba Valley pottery ever since, even when other innovations came on the scene.

Chip to handle edge with "5"; some glaze crazing; some areas of chipping and loss to rim; some surface soiling underneath handles; a few greenish colored stains.