Ceramic animal figurines have been popular in the United States since the 18th century, and many were modeled after English prototypes, especially those made at Staffordshire potteries. The whimsical cow creamer—a popular mid-19th-century form—is decorated in Rockingham glaze, an inexpensive, ubiquitous brown glaze that was popularized by American potteries, especially in Bennington, Vermont.