Franciscan Pottery Archives

Tested for a Lead Safe Mama Instagram follower, Franciscan “Picnic” pattern dish, Made in USA: 108,300 ppm Lead on surface (not safe for use with food)

May 2, 2023September 24, 2023

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-Federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead-poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used by…

Blue and silver Franciscan Twilight pattern dish: 304,000 ppm (30%!) Lead on the blue glazed food surface of the dish.

August 11, 2022October 18, 2022

1 Comment

XRF test results for the dish pictured. Reading #1) on the blue center of the dish 60-Second Reading Lead (Pb): 304,000 +/- 21,000 ppm Cadmium (Cd): 269 +/- 91 ppm Tin (Sn): non-detect Mercury (Hg): non-detect Selenium (Se): non-detect Barium (Ba): 2,482 +/- 804 ppm Arsenic (As): non-detect Chromium (Cr): non-detect Antimony (Sb): 468 +/-…

Vintage Cherry Pattern Scoop (possibly Franciscan): 237,000 ppm Lead (90 ppm Lead & up is considered unsafe)

June 5, 2021September 14, 2023

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

Vintage Starburst pattern dishes: 83,000 ppm Lead. All Franciscan pieces are high Lead and I do not consider them food-safe!

July 10, 2020January 20, 2024

11 Comments

Each of the images below is a link to test results for the Franciscan image pictured: Posted: July 10, 2020 Summary: When tested with an XRF instrument, the dish pictured here had the readings listed below. ALL FRANCISCAN POTTERIES pieces I have EVER TESTED have had a similarly high level of Lead. They also…

Square orange Franciscan Potteries dish: 228,400 ppm Lead — 23% Lead in the glaze! (90 ppm is unsafe for kids)

December 10, 2019April 20, 2023

4 Comments

When tested with an XRF instrument the small burnt orange Franciscan potteries dish (made in California) pictured here had the following readings on the FOOD SURFACE of the dish: Lead (Pb): 228,400 +/- 8,600 ppm Barium (Ba): 2,765 +/- 437 ppm Chromium (Cr): 398 +/- 212 ppm Tin (Sn): 62,800 +/- 2,400 ppm Zinc (Zn):…

I just started watching “I Love Lucy” with my youngest son — and guess what I spotted?

August 11, 2019August 11, 2019

10 Comments

My youngest son is a bit hooked on T.V. This is par-for-the-course (as I understand it) for American 11 year old boys, and especially so for boys who suffer from severe ADHD and have trouble focusing on so many other types of activities. We try to limit the amount of brain-eating YouTube videos (hyperdramatized droning Minecraft…

1995 Franciscan Desert Rose China, Made in England: 47,800 ppm Lead on the food surface! 90 is unsafe for a child.

July 25, 2019October 23, 2021

15 Comments

When this Franciscan Desert Rose Pattern China (Made in the England by Johnson Brothers in 1995) was tested with an XRF instrument it came in at 47,800 +/- 1,400 ppm lead. It is negative for Cd (cadmium), As (arsenic) and Hg (mercury), however that is one heck of a lot of lead to be found…

Vintage (c. 1950s ?) Franciscan Masterpiece Minaret Pattern Saucer: 115,700 ppm Lead. This is NOT food safe.

February 10, 2019

When tested with an XRF instrument, this vintage Franciscan Masterpiece China saucer / desert plate in the Minaret pattern (c. 1950*s ?) was positive for levels as high as 115,700 ppm Lead. That’s more than 11% Lead in the surface glaze on this piece (on the functional / food-surface of the dish). *If you can find…

Vintage (c. 1950s ?) Franciscan Masterpiece Minaret China (Silver Pattern): 123,800 ppm Lead. This is NOT food safe.

February 10, 2019February 10, 2019

When tested with an XRF instrument, this vintage Franciscan Masterpiece China in the Minaret pattern (c. 1950*s ?) was positive for levels as high as 123,800 ppm Lead. That’s more than 12% Lead in the surface glaze on this piece (on the functional / food-surface of the dish). *If you can find more information about the…

Vintage (c. 1950s) Franciscan Apple Earthenware Sugar Bowl: 161,200 ppm Lead. These pieces are NOT safe for food use.

January 7, 2019January 7, 2019

2 Comments

When tested with an XRF instrument, this Franciscan Apple vintage Franciscan Earthenware sugar bowl (c. 1950s) was positive for 161,200 ppm Lead. That’s more than 16% Lead in the surface glaze on this piece. Here’s a link to a set of this china on Amazon* (as an example): https://amzn.to/2RwwLrx Here’s the full XRF reading for this…

Do Franciscan Potteries vintage dishes have unsafe levels of lead? Does Mexican pottery that is marked lead-free have unsafe levels of lead? (video)

June 19, 2018April 23, 2020

5 Comments

Here are the blog posts related to the video below: Franciscan Ivy. Franciscan Desert Rose. Mexican “Lead-Free” Pottery. Comments to the “viewers” in this are from the original posting of the video as a Facebook Live video! Video is about 6 minutes long, and also shows you how to stretch one LeadCheck swab out to…

Franciscan Desert Rose Earthenware China — c. 1941, Made in USA: 122,200 ppm Lead! (90 ppm is unsafe in kids’ items)

June 14, 2018September 24, 2023

39 Comments

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

Franciscan Ware Potteries (c. 1948) Franciscan Ivy Pattern Serving Tray: 304,000 ppm Lead [90 ppm is unsafe]

June 14, 2018September 1, 2019

4 Comments

This is a Franciscan Potteries vintage “Ivy” pattern serving tray that I got at the Good Will Bins a while back (to add to my “Museum of Lead” collection!) The interesting thing about glazes (especially on pieces that are handmade or hand-painted) is that the levels of lead can vary significantly across the surface of…

Vintage Franciscan Apple China is not safe for food use purposes: 80,700 ppm Lead

December 27, 2016November 24, 2022

13 Comments

Published: December 27, 2016 When tested with an XRF instrument this Franciscan Apple vintage (c. 1950s?) china was positive for 80,700 ppm Lead. These usually also test positive with a reactive agent swab test. Items intended for children are required by current legislation to be under 90 ppm lead in the glaze, paint or coating….