1975-92 Shown with 1973-231. D2008-CMD. Mugs

Mug

Date1740-1780

MediumBrown salt-glazed stoneware with metallic brown wash

DimensionsOverall: 5 5/16 x 3 1/2 x 4 3/4in. (13.5 x 8.9 x 12.1cm)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1975-92

DescriptionMug: circular spreading tooled foot supports the bell-shaped body; applied to one side is an extruded ear-shaped handle with a pinched lower terminal. The body decorated with tooled stippling between bands.Label TextAmong the many forms recovered from excavation sites, thinly potted straight-sided tankards and baluster-shaped mugs predominate in the category of Nottingham-type drinking vessels.

Archaeological evidence at Mount Vernon documents the use of such brown stoneware tankards at the main house circa 1745–1755. Undecorated Nottinghamwares were present in eighteenth-century America in great quantities, as witnessed by a simple baluster mug recovered from the Hubbard House lot in Williamsburg, but there was also a penchant for ornamentation. Tankards and mugs like this one with roulette decoration alone or others like 1973-231 with bands of fluting, bread crumbs (also called potter’s waste or grog) were hugely popular during the mid- to late-eighteenth century. Examples of drinking vessels embellished in this manner have been excavated from sites throughout the colonies.ProvenancePurchased from Jellinek & Sampson Antiques, London