York County, Pennsylvania, mid 18th century, decorated with hearts and tulips, text reads "DANCKET DEM HERN DEM / WI WB / BH AD", 22-1/4 x 23-1/4 x 3-4 in.

Provenance: Anne S. McPherson, Nashville, Tennessee, April 2009 (accompanied by copy of receipt for $900); From the Collection of Elbert H. Parsons, Jr., Huntsville, Alabama

Literature: Example of identical design illustrated in The Bible in Iron, Henry Mercer Chapman, (1914), p. 88, fig. 140, in a section on the Mary Ann Furnace. Similar example illustrated in Iron at Winterthur, Don Fennimore, 2004, p. 69, fig.24.

Note: Attributed to the Mary Ann Furnace by John Bivins and Sumpter Priddy as discussed on the invoice. The Mary Ann furnace was established in 1762 by George Ross and Mark Bird in York County, Pennsylvania. It was the first charcoal burning iron furnace built west of the Susquehanna River. It was a primary manufacturer of iron stoves and a critical supplier of cannonballs and grapeshot for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. George Ross signed the Declaration of Independence.