Topic: Wine jug

[Antwerp1954]

Can anyone date this wine jug and tell me where they think it was made? Any ideas on the head shown?

[Lustrousstone]

Your picture is way too small. Resize a high-res pic so the longest dimension is 700 pixels - that should work. You have about 125 kb per picture. A base shot would be useful as well

[Antwerp1954]

OK - let's try again. The jug is about 20cm tall and quite heavy. The base is quitei flat with no sign of a pontil mark but with a hint of cellulite!

[Lustrousstone]

No idea but good pictures. The cellulite is where the base was flattened on the marver

[Paul S.]

I was curious to know why 'wine jug' rather than 'claret jug'  -  of course there may well be a difference.

The fact that the handle is attached at the top only seems unusual  -  think I'd be cautious about holding the handle when full of liquid - perhaps try it with water first and held only just above some sort of soft support
Are there any stains on the interior of the glass  -  older jugs/decanters - unless they've been cleaned very well, show tide marks or slight cloudyness quite often.

Is the metalwork an alloy/base metal, or perhaps a type of EPNS originally?              The head might be someone famous, or equally just a stylized bust.            Presumably no marks on the metal.

Was this bought with a specific provenance/origin and date ? -  with that unusual handle arrangement I was wondering if it might be decorative only.
Off the cuff I'd have thought a Continental origin perhaps.

[bfg]

the nose looks a bit roman-esque to me could he be an emperor perhaps? not very well up on my Caesars! or maybe Bacchus? as wine related?

edited to add: prob not - he looks too staid for him 

[Antwerp1954]

The metal is brass and looks quite well made - very solid. Handle also made of brass. It was sold as a 19th century French wine jug but I did not want to prejudice those giving their ideas. In my view I don't think the head looks like any king/emperor of France after Napoleon. It does look a bit like Joseph Napoleon who ruled Spain. Over to you.

[Paul S.]

must admit to not being very well up on Corsican rebels - but can imagine the bust could well be that of a Napoleon - the hair looks about right.
This highlights the matter of buying on trust in an area that we know little or nothing of  -  although for all we know you might be an expert on French wine jugs.
We all buy something at some time for reasons other than that it comes from an area we know about - and then we take the sellers word for it's authenticity, and hope we have made the right decision.
You'd imagine that an item of table glass such as this might show some good usage wear  -  however, as they always say on the box, you should buy something, first and foremost, because you like it.

As with any other century, the nineteenth lasted for a long time  -  do you have an opinion on whether it might be early, middle or late?

[Antwerp1954]

I've done some research and think the head might be that of Charles Felix who was King of Sardinia in the 1820s. He was also Duke of Savoy, Aosta and Piedmont.

Does the head look similar to the one on the coin?

Does the jug look right for northern Italy?

Does the date of 1820-30 seem right for the style?

Thanks