Small Aurora Egg Vase in Chinese Blue

Name: Small Aurora Egg Vase in Chinese Blue
Brand: Ben Owen
Price: 150.00 USD
Availability: InStock

$150.00

A glaze that was lost for 60 years

The glaze on this vase was gone for sixty years. Ben Owen Sr. developed Chinese Blue at Jugtown Pottery in the 1930s — copper mixtures fired to 2,250 degrees, arriving at a blue that moves between turquoise and oxblood depending on where the flame touched it. Production stopped in 1947 and the formula went with it. Owen rebuilt it from memory. His grandson still uses that recovered recipe.

Chinese Blue pieces are wood-fired and set at the center of the kiln, the hottest place in it, where the color comes up richest. Often it takes two firings to get there.

The form is just as old. An egg — full at the shoulder, drawn in at the neck, borrowed from early Chinese vases and thrown by three generations of Ben Owens in Seagrove, North Carolina. It is a shape that holds a single branch better than it holds a bouquet, and it does not need either one to earn the table it sits on.

The color develops differently in every firing. What you see in the photograph is the piece you'll receive. Signed by hand, 2026 firing.

4"w x 6"h.

Why We Love Ben Owen III's Vases

A form three generations have thrown

The egg vase is not a new shape for this family. Ben Owen Sr. threw it, Ben Owen Jr. threw it, and Ben Owen III throws it now — drawn originally from the early Chinese vase forms the Jugtown potters studied. Full at the shoulder, narrowed at the neck. The proportion has been refined across three lifetimes at the same wheel, which is why it looks so balanced.

No Other Vase Like It

Because the glaze responds to smoke and flame, the color falls differently on every piece that leaves the kiln. The pooling at the base, the drift of red across one shoulder, the band where it thinned — those belong to this vase. The photograph on this page is the piece that will arrive. There is no second one that matches it.

The neck decides the arrangement

The opening is narrow. One magnolia stem, three quince branches in February, a single dogwood in spring — anything more is fighting the vase. That constraint is doing you a favor: it takes the hardest part of arranging off the table entirely. Fill it, put one thing in it, walk away.

Specifications

6.5"w x 12.5"h.

Small Aurora Egg Vase in Chinese Blue

$150.00

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Craftsman Profile

Ben Owen

Ben Owen III is the third Ben Owen at the wheel in Seagrove, North Carolina. He started throwing at eight and was apprenticed to his grandfather and father by thirteen. A BFA in ceramics followed, then a season studying wood-firing in Tokoname, Japan. His work is held by the Smithsonian and the Mint Museum of Craft and Design.

He works in the family's recovered Chinese Blue — a copper glaze his grandfather developed at Jugtown Pottery in the 1930s, lost when production stopped in 1947, and rebuilt years later from memory. Ben still mixes that recipe. Most of his pots pass through the Pappagama, the four-chambered wood kiln he built and named for the year he became a father. A firing takes four days, and no two pieces come out alike.

Frequently Asked Questions

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We aim for all our customers to be happy with their order, and do what it takes to make things right.

Do understand though that as most of our products are handmade and not mass produced, there will be some variation in finish, color, or size. But if any product arrives damaged, we will happily replace it. Please send back your return within 14 days of receiving it.

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Yes, we ship all over the world. Shipping costs will apply, and will be added at checkout. We run discounts and promotions all year, so stay tuned for exclusive deals.

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It depends on where you are. Orders processed here will take 5-7 business days to arrive. Overseas deliveries can take anywhere from 7-16 days. Delivery details will be provided in your confirmation email.

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Small Aurora Egg Vase in Chinese Blue

A glaze that was lost for 60 years

Why We Love Ben Owen III's Vases