Jug, shape no. 586

Ornamental jugs or pitchers were made by almost every English manufacturer of ceramics in the middle of the 19th century, including the pioneering firm of Minton & Co. The designers who created this model were likely inspired by Chinese and Japanese motifs to realize its form and decoration. The elegant and almost playful overlaying of the lotus plant motifs on the fish scale ground suggests that the Minton designers were quite knowledgeable and comfortable working in an Asian style by the mid-1860s. The firm also chose to copyright this clever design by registering the model with the British Designs Registry on January 6, 1865. This government entity was created by the United Kingdom’s 1839 Designs Registration Act, which protected manufacturers from unauthorized copying of “ornamental” designs that were registered. As part of submitting a design for registration, a manufacturer had to include a “representation” of the design, often a drawing or, as time went on, a photograph. These representations are now preserved at the UK’s National Archives and provide an invaluable source of information about Victorian design.

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Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.

Deborah and Philip English, Baltimore, by 2016, [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; given to the Walters Art Museum, 2024.