With a folk-art aesthetic, this unique crock has a large

November 15th, 2025

With a folk-art aesthetic, this unique crock has a large brushed and slip-trailed design of a cobalt cat with yarn decoration. Sgraffito-style incised details to the fur appear throughout the head and neck. The 14" tall crock is inscribed “Geddesburg” and stamped “W.H. FARRAR & Co. / GEDDES, N.Y.” The top-selling lot sold to Adam Weitsman for $204,000 (est. $25,000/40,000) and will be installed at what will be a new stoneware wing at the New York State Museum in Albany, New York.

This circa 1850 crock was discovered in the original owner’s home in 1920, when the property was sold, which was roughly 70 years after the crock was made. In 1987, the crock was sold through Marlin Denlinger Auctions of Bennington, Vermont, for $13,750. Considered an iconic masterwork, it bears what is regarded as the finest known depiction of a house cat in 19th-century American stoneware. In a broader sense, it can be regarded as being among the great examples of a cat in 19th-century folk portraiture. Some condition issues include a sealed diagonal crack that extends from rim to shoulder on the front; in-the-firing iron pings to the surface; two small surface flakes to the shoulder on the front; a long-sealed curving crack from rim on reverse that extends to the right side of the crock’s front; some light fry to the cobalt; and also a few base chips. Crocker Farms, Sparks, Maryland, November 5-15, 2025.

$204,000