Covina tripod bowl

This tripod planter from Colvina Pottery in California has a deep, mysterious moss green drip glaze. The playful kidney shape is pure 1950s, mimicking the popular shape of thousands of turquoise swimming pools across nearby Los Angeles. The planter measures 8″ long, 5″ wide and 3″ high and is marked “Covina Pottery / 926 / USA.”

Covina Pottery was founded in Covina, California, in 1943. In this town northeast of Los Angeles, the company’s earliest products were wonderful planters and other florist items, although they also produced lovely vases and art pottery. Most of what collectors find today are their sturdy planters; the 40s and 50s planters are often in remarkable glazes and exuberant shapes. In the 1960s, the pottery was purchased by the Rhodus family, who continued operations until the 1990s.