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George IV jug with lion handle: C.41-1981

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Object information

Current Location: Gallery 27 (Glaisher)

Titles

George IV jug with lion handle

Maker(s)

Pottery: Phillips & Bagster (Possibly)
Modeller: Abington, James Leonard (Perhaps)

Entities

Categories

Description

Mustard yellow, relief moulded, smear-glazed stoneware.

Jug, circular in plan with bulbous body, short straight neck, pinched spout and over-arching handle, standing on a thin footring. The handle is moulded in the form of a lion, his head looking down inside the jug. Below the spout is a bust of George IV in profile to left imposed on a sunburst. On each side is a flying Victory holding out a wreath towards him. On each side of the neck are a rose, a thistle and a shamrock, with a two stylised rosettes around the spout. The interior is fully glazed and glossy. The underside is recessed and smear-glazed.

Notes

History note: Gift, anonymous, 1981

Legal notes

Gift, anonymous, 1981

Measurements and weight

Height: 19.3 cm
Width: 19.5 cm

Place(s) associated

  • Hanley ⪼ Staffordshire ⪼ England

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Given (1981) by Anonymous

Dating

19th Century
Circa 1820 CE - 1830 CE

Note

Relief moulded jugs (some with ceramic or metal lids), in a wide variety of design, were popular in mid-19th Century homes, where they were used for water, beer, milk and other liquids which might now be kept in bottles, cans or plastic jars. The smear-glazing makes the most of the way that colour-stained clays show off crisply-moulded ornament, whilst the stoneware would be durable in an everyday setting. There are several examples in the Fitzwilliam Collection.

This is an early design and the animal handle is unusual. It was was produced in at least three different sizes, though few examples have survived and none of these is dated. The George IV portrait is similar to medals made to celebrate his accession in 1820, so the jug may have been made at that time or perhaps to commemorate his death in 1830. A jug with handle formed as a hound and hunting scenes, made by Phillips & Bagster of Hanley, has been dated by Henrywood to 1818-23, the earliest that such relief moulded jugs are known to have been made. Versions of that jug were subsequently made by John Denton Bagster, 1823-28, and by William Ridgway, though not until 1831 or after. All three operated from the same works at Hanley and employed James Leonard Abington (who later became Ridgway’s partner) as a designer and modeller. It therefore seems possible that this jug, made 1820-1830, was made by Phillips and Bagster, or J.D.Bagster, and perhaps modelled by Abington.

School or Style

Regency

People, subjects and objects depicted

Components of the work

Interior composed of lead-glaze
Decoration

Materials used in production

Stoneware

Techniques used in production

Press-moulding : Yellow stoneware, the interior glazed. Press-moulded in two halves with integral reliefs

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: 'I ' and '6'
  • Location: On base
  • Method of creation: Impressed
  • Type: Mark

References and bibliographic entries

Identification numbers

Accession number: C.41-1981
Primary reference Number: 74967
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Wednesday 15 July 2020 Last processed: Wednesday 13 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "George IV jug with lion handle" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/74967 Accessed: 2024-11-05 12:29:31

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{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/74967 |title=George IV jug with lion handle |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-05 12:29:31|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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