A very attractive 18th century Italian tin glazed or faience wet drug jar labelled O. Liliorum. The 'O' stands for ‘oleum’ which is Latin for oil.

O. Liliorum was the oil of water lillies. The recipe commonly used by Apothecaries was 4 ounces of white water lillies in a pound and a half of ‘Fountain water’. Oleum Liliorum was used for the treatment of headaches (plus numerous other complaints, as was the order of the day)

Dating to the middle of the 18th century, this drug jar shows considerable wear which is typical of faience ware: there is damage to the foot which has been glued back in the past. There is a crack below the handle running diagonally downwards towards the base. The spout has been competently glued at some point in the past. The handle has been broken at some point and glued.

The cork stopper is not original to the item, and is easily removeable.

Despite the historic breakages this item displays well, having good form and proportion.

Dimensions:

Height: 21cm

Maximum width: 20cms

Diameter of base: 9cms

Postage is just to mainland UK with delivery via UPS, but personal collection from Buntingford (East Herts, SG9) is most welcome

Please see my other items which are predominantly 18th and 19th century in date