Puzzle Jug

Public Domain

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CultureEnglish

Titles

Puzzle Jug

Datec. 1740–1780

Made inEngland

MediumSalt-glazed stoneware with cobalt

Dimensions7 5/8 × 6 1/4 × 4 5/8 in. (19.4 × 15.9 × 11.7 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, museum purchase funded by Martha and James Alexander

Object numberB.2001.1

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Kilroy Center

On view

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Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

CERAMICS

DescriptionGerman and Dutch potters introduced the technique of making salt-glazed stoneware to England in the 1600s. Durable and hygienic, salt-glazed stoneware gained great popularity in the 1700s, eventually surpassing that of delftware. While English potters made salt-glazed stoneware with various body colors and decorated it with colored slips and enamels, much was white with molded decoration and sometimes with elaborate piercings. A puzzle jug was a trick drinking vessel that challenged the drinker to drain the contents without spilling. The solution required the covering of certain holes and spouts with the fingertips while sucking the liquid through one of the spouts.
Provenance[M. & P. Warren Antiques, Southport, Connecticut]; purchased by MFAH, 2001.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

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Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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