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05-123.
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Widely known in current times as a breakthrough line for Wright, Knowles Esquire wasn't met with much enthusiasm upon its introduction. Catalogue retailers refused to carry it because the decoration was difficult to represent in print. Due to problems in production and marketing, very little Esquire made it to market. Even though, the design was especially admired by the artistic community. Wright himself used a set at his Dragon Rock residence, and Walter Dorwin Teague borrowed a set for a display even though he had designed many lines of dinnerware himself.
Due to its rarity, this is the first piece of Esquire I've found in the wild. it shows up from time to time in antique shops, and I regularly see it at local midcentury modern stores, but never before have I seen a piece in a junk shop. Now that I've had a chance to handle a piece in person, I see some of the manufacturing problems firsthand. This piece has at least 6 fairly significant glaze skips, which while they don't bother me too badly I can imagine why the design didn't fly off the shelves.
Found on November 12, 2005 in Minneapolis, MN.
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