Ladle
Unknown Artist
1720–50
Medium
Stoneware
Dimensions
H. 3 3/4 in. (9.5 cm)
Classification
Ladle
Culture
British (American market)
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mrs. Russell S. Carter, 1946
Accession Number
46.64.10
Art Historical Context
This modest stoneware ladle, crafted between 1720 and 1750 by an unknown British potter for the American market, offers a glimpse into everyday colonial life. Standing just 3 3/4 inches tall, its simple, functional form—likely wheel-thrown and salt-glazed—highlights the practicality of stoneware, a durable ceramic prized for its resistance to cracking and impermeability when properly fired. British potters produced such wares in large quantities, exporting them across the Atlantic to meet the needs of American households lacking robust local ceramics industries. In the context of early 18th-c...