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Masonic Mug
1790-1800
Maker not marked
England
Earthenware
overall: 4 3/4 x 3 5/16 x 4 5/16 in.; 12.065 x 8.4138 x 10.9538 cm
Special Acquisitions Fund
76.51

Masonic Mug; Liverpool type; cream color with green, yellow, red, and black colored transfer-printed Masonic decorations of crossed quills, checkered pavement, beehive, sun, moon, shield, and banners that read "SIT LUX ET LUX FUIT TUTE ET SILENT/ AMOR HONOR ET JUSTITIA".


In the early 1800s, potters manufactured mugs and other vessels embellished with Masonic-themed prints in great numbers. Imported to America for Masonic consumers, these fashionable and decorative objects were found in lodges and private homes. Some of the iconography featured on English ceramics may have inspired apron-makers and other artisans who served a clientele of American Masons. For further information, see Hamilton, John D., "Material Culture of the American Freemasons," 1994, p. 217, 219, 223, 278.



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