Lot 384: Nonconnah Pottery Vase

Scarce Tennessee Nonconnah art pottery cameo vase with slip-painted morning glory flowers, vine and leaves on a matte green ground. Signed "Nonconna" (sic) and "Mrs. A. Stephen" to underside with incised "C". 8 1/4" H. Circa 1905. Note: Nonconnah is a Native American name given to a stream that runs through Memphis, Tennessee; it translates literally as 'Long Stream'. The Nonconnah Pottery was started in 1901 in Memphis and operated by Nellie Randall Stephen (Mrs. A. Stephen) and her son, Walter. Nellie was an artist whose designs frequently represented Tennessee's natural flora. The mother-son team produced molded or wheel thrown pieces there until Mrs. Stephen's death in 1910. Walter Stephen then relocated to Skyline, North Carolina, and the company produced pottery in N.C. from 1913 to 1916, when Walter left to go into the construction business. He continued to experiment with pottery, however, and founded the Pisgah Forest Pottery in 1926. Provenance: Private West Tennessee Collection. Source: "Pisgah Forest and Nonconnah: The Potteries of Walter B. Stephen" by Rodney Henderson Leftwich.

CONDITION: Overall excellent condition with a few minor darkened smudge spots, possibly in the making, to one side.