PRESENTATIONS TO MUSEUM

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22309, 25 January 1938, Page 13

PRESENTATIONS TO MUSEUM

FIRST PUZZLE JUG TO BE ACQUIRED

A presentation- of a puzzle jug, the first to be acquired by the museum, has been made to the Canterbury Museum by Mrs J. Mary Helen Shadbolt, of Kairaki. A basketwork fruit dish, of Leedes ware, has also been presented to the museum by Mrs M. Rob.ertson, of Christchurch. Mr W. J. Carlyle, who advises the museum on China ware, said that the jug was a perfect replica of the earlier types of this work, and was probably manufactured about 1760. The jug has been a heirloom in Mrs Shadbolt’s family for 100 years. The jug consists of three spouts, each projecting from a tube which runs round the rim and down the handle to the bottom of the vessel. The ton of the neck being perforated, it seems impossible to obtain any of the liquor without spilling it. The secret is to stop two of the spouts with the fingers while drinking at the third. The fruit dish has a high polish on the surface, and is extremely light in weight. Special clays were obtained from Devon, Cornwall, and Poole when the Leede,g factory began operations in 1760. Leedes ware is outstanding in quality and texture, the potters specialising in basketwork and beautifully manufactured perforated dishes.