Topic: leech jar ? help please

[Paul S.]

Unlike many others here Chris I tend to collect only in a general sense, but reckon I have a catholic taste which is odd for an atheist - and the ability to collect like a magpie.
Down side is I'm forever shoving stuff back into charity shops  -  and although I'm never good at any one thing, like you I enjoy the social and historical interest that comes with these pieces.

I'm sure we have folk here who know something about roemers, so you should be o.k.

[ju1i3]

Paul, I also have some of the fern-engraved examples, in addition to plain ones.

Guy Gaboriau's book of medical antiques is an excellent reference book that features them, including one similar to the cobalt blue example here.

Chris I think your original item is too tall, tall enough for a stopper. Is it ground inside for a stopper?

[Ivo]

maybe useful to add some factual information about sizes again

http://www.leeches.biz/care-leeches.htm

A seed storage bowl of 350 ml is just not large enough to hold leeches. 

[ju1i3]

You're comparing apples and oranges. You're also using modern standards. Leeches collected in the 19th century are gone now. They were so popular that collectors had to move further and further east through Europe as supplies were exhausted. The ones in your reference are modern farmed leeches. They look longer to me. They say 50 to a large jar. I'm sure 19th century users of leeches (and many many ordinary people did use them) did not worry about modern animal welfare standards. They wanted one from the chemist and they needed a little jar to put it in temporarily.

[Ivo]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hirudo_medicinalis

I am assuming nothing but so far no leech jar or pot à sangsue has turned up in any medical or glass catalogue of the era. 

http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,43125.msg240902.html#msg240902

[brucebanner]

As a reply to Julie i would say my jar has never had a stopper it's lovely and smooth and unmarked on the inner rim, regards Chris.

[brucebanner]

This jar holds two pints of water that fills it just below the upper rim, perhaps this is the equivalent of the the Stuart tankard argument i stepped into not so long ago. Whatever this is it's a great looking piece of glass, i'm no plant expert but does anyone recognise the flower on the side might that suggest it contained that specific plant seeds, is it an aquatic plant of some sort?, thanks for all your help it's been a fascinating read especially the old post Ivo put a link to on this thread from a previous GMB post, regards Chris.

[SantaR]

Chris

I've wracked my brain over the plant on your jar to no avail. Maybe Kew could help.  Or the RHS.  They might know if it is indeed a seed storage rather than a leech storage jar and what the plant might be.  Just a thought. 

[Paul S.]

the engraved flower head on Stuart's large leech jar has some similarity to the earlier C18 method of of creating a stylized rose that appeared on some Jacobite glasses -  segmented into six petals.        I'm not suggesting this piece has connections to that cause - perhaps it's just an easy or simple way of engraving a flower head.               It may well not be intended to be a specific flower.

As a child, I do remember paddling in a particular brook - looking for bullheads and loach under stones, and seem to remember seeing the  occasionally leech - which from memory were quite small things.

[bat20]

The plant could be the lesser spearwart,a sort of water based buttercup.