# Big blue cooking pot **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 29, 2019, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392 "2019-08-29T02:23:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Captain\_S\_itmagnet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5ac83/32.png) [@Captain\_S\_itmagnet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_S_itmagnet)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/1 "2019-08-29T02:23:41Z")
So we are currently canning tomatoes and I bought one of those big blue metal pots with a basket inside and a lid. Is there any function or is it just a traditional marking pattern that there are a bunch of tiny white dots randomly on the pot and lid surfaces. It almost looks like when you flick a paintbrush that has just been washed and some paint is still on it and the paint dots would have landed on the metal. Or a starry night. My guess is there is no function more of a traditional style. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/2 "2019-08-29T02:27:52Z")
Enamel wear. I think the splatter pattern is probably tradtional. I have alot of enamel wear. Inherited it from my MIL. Some is red some blue. And one yellow stock pot that I love. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/3 "2019-08-29T02:41:11Z")
AFAIK strictly traditional. Great stuff. I have a big canning pot and a campfire coffee pot in blue enamel ware. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/4 "2019-08-29T03:35:41Z")
‘Speckles’ were/are patent-able, > [@](#): > > 1876 ~ US patent for “enameling sheet-metal ware”, “beautifully-mottled” and “more durable”, granted to the Niedringhaus brothers > 1889 ~ Carl Vollrath’s first US patent - a way of producing a “mottled or pleasingly-speckled appearance”[RIGHT][CITE](http://www.oldandinteresting.com/enamelware-history.aspx)[/RIGHT] CMC fnord! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/5 "2019-08-29T03:43:02Z")
Jackson Polluck made splatter paint into ‘fine’ art. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/6 "2019-08-29T14:42:26Z")
Generically, the speckled enamel stuff is called graniteware. Not too surprisingly, it’s actually a trademarked name. Somewhat surprisingly, the same folks have been making GraniteWare for nearly 150 years, and over 100 years in the same factory. [https://graniteware.com](https://graniteware.com) ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/7 "2019-08-29T14:58:19Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Jackson Polluck made splatter paint into ‘fine’ art. I can’t tell if you’re one letter off from the correct name (Pollock) or one letter off from a nice pun (Potluck). ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/8 "2019-08-29T18:17:09Z")
The speckled blue pattern is just tradition for cooking/canning pots. You can also get serving dishes & platters, and even tableware made of this. The tableware I remember was made in solid primary colors, red, blue, yellow + white & black. Again, the colors were just tradition, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2019, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-blue-cooking-pot/839392/9 "2019-08-29T18:41:32Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > I can’t tell if you’re one letter off from the correct name (Pollock) or one letter off from a nice pun (Potluck). 😃