Antique Rare Cambridge Art Pottery “OTOE” Chamber Stick

Description

After exhaustive research and examination, I have concluded that this handsome matte green chamber stick is a rare piece of Cambridge Art Pottery.  This chamber stick, with finger loop, is in the Art Nouveau style and according to my resources, the company produced the matte green glazed ware from 1907-1908 and named the pottery line, “OTOE”. Cambridge Pottery, made in Cambridge, Ohio, from about 1895 until World War I, produced a basic functional line of earthen ware that included several pottery lines: OTOE, OAKWOOD, CAMBRIDGE and TERRHEA.  At some point, the company changed its name to Guernsey Pottery Company and started making a line of dinnerware until 1918.  Cambridge is one of the minor art pottery companies and because they worked only about twenty years, there is not much to be found.
This pottery piece functioned as a chamber stick.  Before electrical service was widespread, candles were brought into the bedroom using chamber sticks, which were shorter than ordinary candleholders and were furnished with a wide pan to catch the wax drippings.  It measures approximately 6” in diameter by 3 ½” in height and incised on the base is the Cambridge Art Pottery mark, “CAP” (the C is the oval shape surrounding the connected AP).  Considering the age of the chamber stick, it is in very good condition.  It does have manufacturing flaws, mainly glaze skips and pops.  There is also evidence of some minor scratches in the pan area and the outer sides.  There are a couple of darker glaze spots in the pan area as well.  One of those spots may be a small chip (when I ran my finger over the area I could feel a slight indentation).  The other spots felt smooth to the touch but there is a definite darker glaze in certain areas.  The candle opening shows signs of wear with a few tiny nicks.  And, as usual for vintage pottery pieces, there is overall crazing.  Although this striking green pottery piece has flaws, it does not have any cracks or any significant chips.  For its small size, this chamber stick has some weight to it and the unusual and striking green glaze gives this piece an extremely soft and satiny finish. This is a remarkable piece of art pottery from the Art Nouveau era, where soft curves and organic design flourished.  It has survived the years with minimal damage and exemplifies the best in American art pottery.  A truly exceptional piece of Cambridge pottery!