Guardian Service Dutch Oven ~ 3 Quart Pot ~ Vintage shops Aluminum Cookware with Tempered Glass Lid ~ Pot with Lid ~ Post 1941 Cookware

This is a Guardian Service dutch oven made by Century Metalcraft of Los Angeles. This cast aluminum pot with hammered finish is the 3 qt. size, although 2 or 2 1/2 quarts is a more realistic cooking capacity. The outside diameter not including the handles is 9 3/4". The height of the pot alone is 3 3/4" and the tempered glass lid adds another 3" including the top handle.

Before the advent of Tupperware home parties, our grandmothers (and great granmas) had the opportunity to attend Guardian Service Waterless Cookware parties. A salesman convinced a friend or family member to host a party and he (or she) cooked a delicious meal and hoped like heck to sell some of the cookware. They were spendy at the time, but grew to be the go-to cookware for many. They were marketed as stove to table as the design also lends itself to serving. The other significant selling attribute was that the domed lid allows moisture from the food to condense on the lid and fall back onto the food preventing it from drying out. Prior to WWII, the lids were the same hammered cast aluminum as the pots. To save the aluminum material for the war effort, Guardian Service switched to tempered glass lids.

The pot in this listing is obviously post 1941. Could be as 'new' as 1956, as that is the year the Century Metalcraft facillity burned down ending the manufacture of Guardian Cookware. This piece was used lightly as the interior shows little damage; there are just a few small pits in the shiny interior. The hammered finish on the outside of the pot has very minor discoloration from use. The glass lid has a small chip visible in the 6th photo. The chip has been buffed smooth and does not impede the snug fit of the shops lid to the pot. The finish on both the pot and the lid have not been ruined by clouding from the dishwasher. The flat bottom has a slight wobble.