Rookwood 1930 Vintage Pottery Blue Elephant Ceramic Paperweight Figurine 2797

William McDonald modeled this elephant for Rookwood in the late 1920s, and it holds up. The form is naturalistic and confident — trunk down, ears spread, standing squarely on a rectangular base. The matte dark blue glaze is the real story here: it pools and breaks across the surface, letting the lighter clay body show through at the high points in a way that looks less like a glaze decision and more like the animal just walked out of something.

Item Details

* Maker: Rookwood Pottery, Cincinnati, Ohio
* Designer: William McDonald
* Year: 1927 (Roman numeral XXVII below flame mark)
* Shape: 2797 — standing elephant on rectangular base
* Glaze: Matte dark slate blue
* Dimensions: 4 1/8" long x 3.5" tall x 2 5/8" wide
* Marks: Rookwood flame mark impressed on base; XXVII (1927); shape number 2797; kiln plug present; "X" mark in glaze on base; artist's mark incised on side of base — see photos

Condition

Great. No chips, cracks, or crazing.