Question:
Hi, i was wondering why my Chef pierre has the letters MN and the number 87 on the bottem??

Answer:

While your Chef cookie jar may be marked RED WING USA, it most likely was not made by Red Wing Potteries. When Red Wing Potteries closed in 1967 most of the company’s assets were sold to the public, including the molds used to form dinnerware and art pottery. Art schools and amateur potters obtained many of these molds. There was no effort on Red Wing’s part to remove or obliterate the Red Wing name from the molds since the company was no longer in business and had no interest in maintaining copyright protection. Thus it is quite common to find amateur or hobby shop pieces made from Red Wing molds with the Red Wing name on the bottom.

Initials and numbers scratched into the bottom of the piece are nearly certain signs that the item was not made by Red Wing. Production pieces were never marked in this manner. Lunch hour dinnerware pieces (items decorated by by workers for their personal use) were marked on the bottom with ink or glaze paint, not with scratching. It is a common practice in art schools for a student to scratch his/her initials and the year in the bottom of the piece before firing. Most likely that is the source of your Chef jar.

Larry