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This page by no means represents the
entire range of Van Briggle glazes. It is a guide only.
Note that lighting, camera, and your monitor settings and quality can effect
the overall look of the colors shown.
These photos were not taken by professional photographers. However, if your
monitor displays reasonably accurate color,
then we feel these examples will reasonably represent the colors indicated.
Jump to: | Early Glazes | Ming Blue | Mulberry & Rose Glazes | White Glazes | Gloss Glazes | All Other Glazes | Top
Type |
Examples |
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Early
Glazes Including: NOTE: |
Jump to: | Early Glazes | Ming Blue | Mulberry & Rose Glazes | White Glazes | Gloss Glazes | All Other Glazes | Top |
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Ming Blue can commonly be found as either a single overall glaze application, or in combination with a darker blue highlight or overspray glaze. Less commonly, Ming Blue may be seen with rose or other colored highlights. |
Jump to: | Early Glazes | Ming Blue | Mulberry & Rose Glazes | White Glazes | Gloss Glazes | All Other Glazes | Top |
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Including: |
Did you know? In 1946, several dramatic changes occurred at Van Briggle Pottery as it re-opened after WWII. One of the most visible was the introduction of Persian Rose glaze, which replaced the generally darker Mulberry glaze. If your pottery LOOKS like Mulberry, but has post-1946 bottom markings, it is likely Persian Rose... although it may look like the older glaze. This is one of the most confusing aspects of dating mid-century Van Briggle Pottery.... and it's easy to understand why. Even experts get confused. Jump to: | Early Glazes | Ming Blue | Mulberry & Rose Glazes | White Glazes | Gloss Glazes | All Other Glazes | Top |
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White, Ivory & Moonglo White glaze in differing formulations appears to have been produced from the outset by Van Briggle. In 1946, a more opaque white glaze was introduced as Moonglo, and thereafter Moonglo became the trademark Van Briggle white glaze. |
Did you know? After a long absence, Van Briggle's white glaze was re-engineered largely by a gentleman by the name of Mr. McDermott (first name unknown) during the "idle" years of WWII,and was re-introduced in 1946 as Moonglo, likely with the help of newly hired Master Potter Clem Hull. Mr. McDermott's new formula was more opaque and adhered better to the clay during firing. During 1946 Clem's father, physicist Walter Austin Hull, also consulted for Van Briggle and the two likely had some input into the two major glazes introduced during that year: Persian Rose and Moonglo (Clem Hull later developed the Gold Ore Glaze for Van Briggle). Walter Hull had been honored in WWI for his work with cement and ceramics for the United States Navy, and founded Hull Santa Fe Pottery in New Mexico. Mr. McDermott is credited with keeping Van Briggle Pottery "alive" during the desperate war years. It was widely reported to have been mothballed during WWII, but the elderly Mr. McDermott (according to Master Potter Fred Wills) performed many necessary functions which kept the pottery from falling into disrepair as America shut down non-vital services and threw itself into defending the world from Adolph Hitler's socialist party and Japan's Warlords. Ironically, physicist Walter Austin Hull, his son Clem, and Clem's wife Fran, all helped shorten that war, as they each worked on the Manhattan Project (the atom bomb) before coming to work at Van Briggle. The next time you see a mid-century Moonglo piece, remember Van Briggle's WWII diligent protector who kept the home "kilns" burning: Mr. McDermott. Jump to: | Early Glazes | Ming Blue | Mulberry & Rose Glazes | White Glazes | Gloss Glazes | All Other Glazes | Top |
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Gloss
Glazes During the Eames era (1950's - 1960's), modernistic gloss - glazed pottery was in hot demand, and Van Briggle responded to America's call by purchasing the modern designs of Dryden Pottery and enlisting the skills of Dryden Master Potter Joe Jezek. |
Did you know? The Eames Era Van Briggle line of pottery is among the most disliked and disrespected Van Briggle pottery today, and is held in disdain by many collectors. But ironically, that line probably sold better than any other of the pottery's distinct offerings, at any other time in history. While it is sadly true that the Eames era under owner Mr. Lewis saw a decline in Artus Van Briggle's ideal of Art Nouveau design and artistic creativity in general, it did at least show a positive cash flow for the pottery's bank account. So, the next time you turn your nose at an "Anna Van" or similar piece of mid-century glossy Van Briggle pottery, pause and reflect that Van Briggle Pottery would not be in business today but for the infusion of cold hard cash which the popular line brought during the 1950's, 60's and early 70's. Hey... General Electric sold a bunch of avocado green refrigerators, too. You don't blame them, do you? You or your mothers are the ones who bought them, after all! Did you know? The "Anna Van" line - widely believed to have been designed to honor Anne Van Briggle - had nothing to do with her? In fact, the name was chosen on the fly - and without much thought - to designate the new line of glossy pottery purchased from Dryden Pottery in Kansas, during 1954-1956, when Dryden was producing their designs and incising their pottery as "Van Briggle - Colo Spgs" even though it was being produced in their pottery in Kansas. After 1956, Van Briggle took over production of the "Anna" gloss line and continued to produce "Anna" gloss pieces in Dryden and traditional VB shapes until 1968, when all gloss pottery was reverted to the normal Van Briggle bottom markings produced with a new clay, and "anna van" was no longer inscribed on the bottoms. Jump to: | Early Glazes | Ming Blue | Mulberry & Rose Glazes | White Glazes | Gloss Glazes | All Other Glazes | Top |
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Including: |
Jump to: | Early Glazes
| Ming Blue | Mulberry & Rose
Glazes | White Glazes | Gloss
Glazes | All Other Glazes | Top |
* Not necessarily the recognized Van Briggle color name, but a general description only.
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