GERMAN JUG OF A BEARDED MAN/BELLARMINE JUG
Modern Age
GERMAN JUG OF A BEARDED MAN/BELLARMINE JUG
Salt-glazed earthenware.
Height: 21 cm. Diameter of mouth: 6 cm. Maximum diameter: 14 cm. Base diameter: 8 cm.
Modern Age. Second half of the 16th century.
Origin
Santo Domingo cloisters. Jerez de la Frontera. Cádiz.
Description
Mould-manufactured bottle in salt-glazed earthenware, a technique that consists of putting common salt in the oven when firing reaches its highest temperature. This results in the characteristic roughness and shiny clear brown tone on the outer surface. It is decorated on the body by three medallions in relief, with heraldic heads inside. On the neck there is a grotesque bearded face, popularly identified (although incorrectly) as Cardinal Bellarmine, an unpopular theologian and Catholic leader of the Counter-Reform in northern Germany and the Netherlands. This is, however, how this type of ceramic got its name. Apart from its use for drinking, jugs of greater capacity were used to store wine and oil. According to some experts, they were even used to store mercury and acids because of their impermeability and hardness.
Bibliography
- Barrionuevo, F. (2009): ““Loza quebrada” del relleno de bóvedas de los claustros de Santo Domingo de Jerez de la Frontera”. Revista de Historia de Jerez 14/15, pp. 255-285.
