Pottery Marks and What They Tell Us

Mark showing pottery name, factory,
country, date, and pattern.

QUESTION: I go antiquing with a long-time friend. Inevitably, whether we’re browsing the tables at a local fleamarket or browsing in an antique shop or show, he always picks up a piece of pottery or porcelain and turns it over to see the mark. What do these marks say about the pieces besides who possibly made them? And are there any other marks from the making of the piece and what do they tell him?

ANSWER: An experienced collector of pottery can tell a lot about a piece’s origin by reading the manufacturers' marks on the bottom of each piece. These marks tell the pottery's name, its location, its company symbol, and often the pattern name or the name given to the body shape of the piece. 

Stamped mark

But there may also be other, less obvious, marks that indicate the method of production or factory flaws that show the level of quality control used by the firm. Collectors familiar with these signs can quickly distinguish between factory flaws and more serious indicators of damage and wear inflicted upon that same piece once it has left the  factory. Knowing the difference allows the experienced collector to purchase pottery with confidence.

While most manufacturer’s marks, which may he printed, incised, impressed, stamped, or applied as paper labels, usually contain the pottery’s name, initials, symbol and location---or some combination of these—some are rather sparse and may only contain a letter within a geometric shape or a crest. 

In the case of the larger firms, a pottery mark also has publicity value and shows the buyer that  a long-established company with a reputation to uphold has made a piece. Such clear name- marks include Wedgwood, Minton, Royal Crown Derby, Royal Doulton, and Royal Worcester in Britain and Bennington, McCoy, and Hull in the U.S.

Though these marks are one of the best and easiest ways to identify ceramics, the shear number of them makes it impossible to every mark. Additionally, many small firms either saw no reason to use marks or sometimes used marks that haven’t been identified because of the short life span and limited production of the company.

Metal stamped mark into clay

To the collector a pottery mark can also identify the manufacturer and help establish the approximate date of manufacture and in several cases the exact year of production, particularly in the case of 19th and 20th century wares from the leading firms which employed private dating systems. With the increasing use of ceramic marks in the 19th century, a large proportion of English and American pottery and porcelain can be accurately identified and often dated.

Pottery’s added marks to their wares in several ways. They could incise them into the soft clay before the piece air dried, in which the mark will show a slight ploughed-up effect. Potters often do this to handmade pieces. Some manufacturers of quantity pieces, such as Wedgwood, impressed a mark into the soft clay using a metal or clay stamp or seal. 

Many pottery manufacturers used painted marks—usually containing their name or initial—added over the glaze at the time of decoration. Some used stencils.

Engraved transfer printed mark

Lastly, most 19th-century pottery makers used printed marks transferred from engraved copper plates at the time of decoration, often in blue under the glaze when the main design is also underglaze blue.

Pottery marks weren’t always universally used. In 1890, President William McKinley introduced the McKinley Tariff Act that imposed tariffs on many imports, including pottery, so that American manufacturers could more easily sell their products. The Act required that all such imports show the name of country of manufacture, such as “England,” “Germany,” “Nippon,” or “France.” In 1921, an amendment to the Act required that the phrase “Made in” precede the country of origin, such as “Made in England” or “Made in Japan.” However, some foreign companies began using the phrase as early as 1898. This is a great way for collectors to date foreign-made pieces.

Underglaze marks

Beginning pottery collectors often miss marks or flaws from manufacturing and instead focus only on the maker’s mark. These marks give clues to the quality of the ceramic bodies each maker used. Potteries used different firing techniques for different grades of ceramics and the distinctive marks each technique left behind, once known, help to establish the quality of a piece.

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The Fair Where Electricity was the Star Attraction

QUESTION: I love to browse the small items found in showcases at antique coops and at flea markets. Recently, I came across a matchsafe with a cigar cutter that came fro the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. I’ve never heard of this. Could you tell me more about it? Is this matchsafe something I want to hold onto?

ANSWER: You’re not alone when it comes to knowing much about this world’s fair. Unfortunately, all the hoopla about the technology exhibited at the fair was overshadowed by a traumatic incident—the assassination of President William McKinley. And while this happened towards the end of the fair at the beginning of September, it undermined the importance of this event.

For six months in the summer of 1901, all the world came to Buffalo, N.Y ,to see the wonders of the new century and to celebrate the unity of the countries of North and South America during the Pan-American Exposition. More than 8.3 million people came to the exposition. Visitors called it “Doing the Pan.” For most, it was the trip of a lifetime. For one person, President William McKinley, it was his last. While canals and gardens dazzled them, the midway seduced them. The buildings, covered in the new electrical lights, kept them in awe.
                   
President William McKinley was shot by anarchist Leon Czolgosz while he was shaking hands with visitors in the Temple of Music on the fairgrounds on September 6, 1901. He died eight days later.

Every country in the Americas participated. The exposition Vacant land at the northern edge of Buffalo was transformed into a Spanish Renaissance style wonderland. Electric light bulbs outlined all of the major buildings. The 391-foot Electric Tower alone boasted 40,000 bulbs. At dusk, visitors gazed in awe at the display of electrical lighting, a novelty at that time.

The fair’s theme was to unite the Americas. Prior to the opening, the exposition’s organizers held a contest for the design of the logo. Raphael Beck, an artist from Lockport, a city on the Erie Canal northeast of Buffalo, won the $50 prize with his entry. The logo featured a map of the western hemisphere. North America was depicted by a fair-haired woman and South America depicted by a dark-haired woman. The women joined hands to form Central America.

The Pan-American Exposition produced thousands of souvenirs which collectors seek today. Many souvenir items were made picturing the buildings and other features of the fair. The Electric Tower pictured on your letter opener was the tallest structure at the fair and often appears on souvenir items.   Many of the souvenirs were pans, said Boyd. One frying pan had a button on the side. When the button is depressed, the lid opens and one sees a tiny buffalo standing in the middle of the pan.

Many of the souvenirs were made of aluminum, a new metal introduced at the Columbian Exposition in 1893. By the time of the Pan-American Exposition, aluminum had become a major industry in nearby Niagara Falls. After President McKinley's death, people bought presidential memorials made of aluminum.

Among the most popular souvenirs were postcards, of which about 500 different ones have been identified. Pan-American stationery allowed exposition visitors to send letters. The Pan-American logo, with or without a buffalo, appeared on the envelope.



Nearly every day was a special day at the Pan-American Exposition, and sponsors of various ceremonies and special days sent invitations. Many of these invitations as well as the envelopes have survived.

Post offices sold special issue stamps in denominations of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 10 cents. These stamps weren't to be used as postage and had to be specifically requested by customers.

And visitors could find free samples of food or beverages or free souvenirs in the Manufacturers & Liberal Arts Building, free sample soap bars in the Larkin Building, free machine-woven ribbons, bookmarks, etc. These, in addition to free brochures and advertising cards, enabled those who could afford only the costs of getting to the Exposition to carry away remembrances of their experience.

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