Courtesy Photo | Fragments of dishes from Syracuse China Corp. that were discovered at Fort McCoy are...... read more read more
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Archaeological researchers performing field investigations at Fort McCoy in 2015 recovered 30 pieces of a service set that included plates, bowls, and a creamer container that were made between 1919 and 1923 by the Syracuse China Corp.
The “St Elmo” pattern found on all of these pieces includes a dark green leaf and medallion swag design beneath ornate double-handled urns. This design was patented in 1913 by John T. Wigley, an employee of Syracuse China, and was used until at least 1948.
This particular pattern was added to ceramics using a method known as transfer printing. This method entails using an engraved metal printing plate to print a pattern on a piece of paper using special pigments, with the paper then placed onto a piece of pottery to transfer the design onto it. Transfer printing was cheaper than the previous method of hand painting each vessel, and allowed much more intricate designs to be replicated on a much larger scale.
We know that the pieces featured in the photo accompanying this article were all manufactured by Syracuse China because they all have, or were clearly connected to pieces that have, a Syracuse China Corp. maker’s mark on the underside of the vessel. This company was founded in 1871 in Geddes, N.Y., as the Onondaga Pottery Co. and began manufacturing fine china near the end of the 19th century. The Syracuse China manufacturing facility closed in 2009, but for more than a century, it supplied fine china to hotels, restaurants, and even United Air Lines.
All archaeological work conducted at Fort McCoy was coordinated by the Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division Natural Resources Branch.
Visitors and employees are reminded they should not collect artifacts on Fort McCoy or other government lands and leave the digging to the professionals. Any person who excavates, removes, damages, or otherwise alters or defaces any historic or prehistoric site, artifact, or object of antiquity on Fort McCoy is in violation of federal law.
The discovery of any archaeological artifact should be reported to the Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division Natural Resources Branch at 608-388-8214.
(Article prepared by the Colorado State University Center for the Environmental Management of Military Lands.)
| Date Taken: | 12.12.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 12.12.2019 11:59 |
| Story ID: | 355448 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 113 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Fort McCoy ArtiFACT: Syracuse China fragments, by Aimee Malone, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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