AN ITALIAN MAIOLICA WET DRUG JAR

AN ITALIAN MAIOLICA WET DRUG JAR

DATED '1545'

the ovoid body inscribed 'A. DE. BVGALOSSA' in a cartouche surrounded by fruit and flowers, the shoulder with a green spout and strap handles

18.5cm

Catalogue Note

This jar would have held Bugloss, a plant closely related to borage. The name bugloss comes from the ancient Greek and means 'ox's tongue', and its flowers are normally violet-blue. Its roots are believed to be diuretic. Early modern herbalists believed that a decoction of the seeds, preferably in wine, banished melancholy and lifted the mood.