c. 2017 Tipp City, Ohio handmade ceramic bowl: 55 ppm Cadmium & 17 ppm Lead

When tested with an XRF instrument, this handmade ceramic bowl [purchased new from an artist who made it in Tipp City, Ohio, c. 2017] had the following readings:

Test one – on the inside food surface of the bowl (more-greenish spot of glaze).

Barium (Ba): 3,582 +/- 239 ppm
Chromium (Cr): 180 +/- 112 ppm
Tin (Sn): 9,348 +/- 153 ppm
Zinc (Zn): 85 +/- 32 ppm
Copper (Cu): 5,024 +/- 111 ppm
Nickel (Ni): 239 +/- 31 ppm
Iron (Fe): 6,305 +/- 167 ppm
Titanium (Ti): 7,866 +/- 629 ppm

Test two – alternate color range on the inside food surface of the bowl (more-purple-ish spot of glaze).

Cadmium (Cd): 55 +/- 10 ppm
Tin (Sn): 4,469 +/- 147 ppm
Zinc (Zn): 259 +/- 38 ppm
Copper (Cu): 3,330 +/- 163 ppm
Iron (Fe): 9,244 +/- 470 ppm
Bismuth (Bi): 23 +/- 11 ppm
Vanadium (V): 199 +/- 81 ppm
Titanium (Ti): 14,400 +/- 600 ppm
Indium (In): 56 +/- 13 ppm
Cobalt (Co): 4,727 +/- 285 ppm
Manganese (Mn): 966 +/- 262 ppm

Please continue reading below the image.

Test one on the substrate (unglazed bottom of the bowl – image above):

Zinc (Zn): 138 +/- 25 ppm
Iron (Fe): 16,400 +/- 600 ppm
Bismuth (Bi): 43 +/- 11 ppm
Vanadium (V): 248 +/- 50 ppm
Titanium (Ti): 5,791 +/- 244 ppm
Manganese (Mn): 1,914 +/- 275 ppm

Test two on the substrate (100-second test):

Lead (Pb): 17 +/- 7 ppm
Barium (Ba): 88 +/- 31 ppm
Chromium (Cr): 146 +/- 52 ppm
Tin (Sn): 43 +/- 10 ppm
Zinc (Zn): 181 +/- 19 ppm
Copper (Cu): 57 +/- 22 ppm
Iron (Fe): 17,600 +/- 400 ppm
Bismuth (Bi): 43 +/- 8 ppm
Vanadium (V): 283 +/- 42 ppm
Titanium (Ti): 6,017 +/- 186 ppm
Platinum (Pt): 58 +/- 26 ppm
Manganese (Mn): 3,016 +/- 224 ppm

Note: Because this bowl has such variation in color (multiple pigment formulations were used in different glazes that have been applied in layers) – I did several tests, each with a different range of colors in the testing “window” [which is a circle that is about one centimeter in diameter] of the XRF instrument.

Are the levels of heavy metals found in this bowl potentially a problem at all?

I don’t have any concern for leaching of toxicants with a bowl like this – given it is a “high fire” pottery piece — and the toxicant levels were also consistently low.

Test results reported on this website are science-based, accurate, and replicable. All tests were done using a high-precision XRF instrument in “ Consumer Goods mode.” Metals not detected by the instrument are not listed above. Tests were done for a minimum of 60 seconds each, unless otherwise noted, and were repeated multiple times on each component to confirm the levels reported.

As always, thank you for reading and for sharing my posts.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama