1880–1882
Pottery kiln or chimney framed by two rooks perched among branches.
Birds and kiln belong to an early pictorial factory device, before the standard block name and RP monogram.
printed · pottery · Cincinnati, Ohio
Pottery & porcelain
Rookwood marks
The name “ROOKWOOD / 1882 (year varies)” appears among Rookwood marks on pottery from Cincinnati, Ohio. Its mark period is 1882–1886.
- Active years
- From 1880
- Country
- United States
- Products
- decorated art-pottery vases, moulded production pottery, architectural tile, bookends, figures, plaques
- Marks
- 5
Historic pottery 1880–1967, including Mississippi period around 1960–1967. Revived in Cincinnati from 2004; current pottery continues.
What to look for
- Identify the factory device first, then the year. Plain ROOKWOOD and an Arabic year belong to the early regular stamp; the reversed R joined to P became the factory monogram in 1886.
- On the annual flame system, add the number of flames to 1886. The border reached fourteen flames in 1900. From 1901 the complete border remained and a Roman numeral supplied the year, so I means 1901.
- Keep the shape number, size letter and decorator’s cipher separate from the date. A hand-scored X can mark a second, while an impressed X beside a shape can have a different experimental meaning.
Dated marks & timeline
5 marks
1882–1886
ROOKWOOD / 1882 (year varies)
Written-out name and Arabic year distinguish it from the RP device introduced in 1886.
impressed · pottery · Cincinnati, Ohio
1886
RP
The complete absence of flames separates the 1886 form from its annual successors.
impressed-mark drawing · pottery · Cincinnati, Ohio
c. 1890
RP / 464 / S; separate incised decorator cipher
A partial flame arc, without a Roman year, identifies the pre 1901 annual-count system.
impressed and incised · pottery · Cincinnati, Ohio
1901
RP / I
The Roman I below the complete flame border dates this example to 1901, unlike flame-count-only marks.
impressed-mark drawing · pottery · Cincinnati, Ohio
About Rookwood Pottery
Maria Longworth Nichols, later Maria Longworth Storer, founded Rookwood Pottery in Cincinnati in 1880. She had previously rented studio space at Frederick Dallas’s pottery. Her father supplied an old schoolhouse for the new enterprise, which she named after her childhood home. The first kiln firing took place on Thanksgiving Day 1880, and wares were on sale by March 1881.
William Watts Taylor joined as manager in 1883 and developed the business. Nichols transferred her interest to him in 1889, and the company was incorporated in 1890. Rookwood became known for painted art pottery and its varied glazes, including dark Standard ware, lighter Iris and Sea Green, and the soft matte surface of Vellum. It also made moulded production pottery and architectural tiles. Individual decorators often added a cipher beside the factory mark and shape number.
The Depression reduced sales and production, and bankruptcy followed in 1941. New owners resumed manufacture. The company later moved to Starkville, Mississippi, around 1960 and closed in 1967. Rookwood was revived in Cincinnati from 2004. The present pottery makes decorative vessels and architectural tile, continuing the name at a different stage of its history.
Also known as: Rookwood · Rookwood Pottery Co. · Rookwood Pottery Company
Look-alikes & how to tell them apart
Weller Louwelsa
Painted floral decoration on dark brown grounds can resemble Rookwood Standard ware. Look for Weller or Louwelsa wording; Rookwood’s factory monogram joins a reversed R to P and carries its annual flame or Roman-numeral date system.