Fabulous Redware Pottery Folk Art Sheep (Lid) with Extruded Fur child's drawing Case snaps tightly closed

Case snaps tightly closed

A beauty of a basket

handle alone 7 7/8" long

and structurally very sound

with a huge presence

Fabulous Redware Pottery Folk Art Sheep (Lid) with Extruded Fur child's drawing Case snaps tightly closedI found this one in Maine this week and have a sense that it is quite a special one a real piece of American folk art I think, I might guess Pennsylvania, which appears to have some good age to it (late 19th c. would not surprise me). I believe it likely once sat atop a pottery jar as a lid, with the lip around its bottom fitting inside the lip of the jar. I take it for a sheep with this abundant coat of extruded clay for fleece and hand sculptured