Double Head-shaped Jug with Crimped Handle: Two Childlike Faces, One Serious, One Smiling

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Double Head-shaped Jug with Crimped Handle: Two Childlike Faces, One Serious, One Smiling

Place of OriginEastern Mediterranean, Possibly Syria or Palestine

DateFourth century

DimensionsH: 3 5/16 in. (8.4 cm); H (Body): 2 in. (5.1 cm); Max Diam: 1 15/16 in. (4.9 cm); Rim Diam: 1 5/16 in. (3.4 cm); Base Diam (nose to nose): 1 9/16 in. (3.9 cm)

MediumRim and neck free blown. Body blown into a two-part mold of two vertical sections, probably open at the base (MCT IX).

ClassificationGlass

Credit LineGift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1923.520

Not on View

DescriptionTransparent pale blue; exact color cannot be determined because of weathering. Medium thin glass. Fabric cannot be determined because of weathering. Similarly colored neck coil and handle. Mold seams concealed in hair at junction of heads. No mold seam on underside of base. Neck squashed at base where it was held with the left hand between the rounded legs of a clamping tool (tongs?). Relief indistinct. No pontil mark. Unworked everted rim, with slight bulge below. Funnel neck. Body in the shape of a double head. Oval flat base, with sunken area in middle. Ribbon handle with three crimps, originating from neck coil and attached to shoulder. Neck coil around middle of neck from right to left. Body in the shape of two heads back to back: one serious face, A, and one smiling face, B. Face A has prominent arched browlines, well-proportioned nose, indistinct mouth, fat cheeks, and massive jaw wider than the forehead. The chin-length hair is rendered as irregular ridges formed from connected knobs. Face B has prominent arched browlines, wide eyes, well-proportioned nose with recessed nostrils, indistinct smiling mouth, knob-like chin, and fat cheeks. The chin-length hair is similar to that of side A. Transparent pale blue; exact color cannot be determined because of weathering. Similarly colored neck coil and handle. DESCRIPTION: Rim and neck free blown. Body blown into a two-part mold of two vertical sections, probably open at the base (probably MCT IX). Mold seams concealed in hair at junction of heads. No mold seam on underside of base. Neck squashed at base where it was held with the left hand between the rounded legs of a clamping tool (tongs?). Relief indistinct. No pontil mark. Unworked everted rim, with slight bulge below. Funnel neck. Body in the shape of a double head. Oval flat base, with sunken area in middle. Ribbon handle with three crimps, originating from neck coil and attached to shoulder. Neck coil around middle of neck from right to left. Body in the shape of two heads back to back: one serious face, A, and one smiling face, B. Face A has prominent arched browlines, well-proportioned nose, indistinct mouth, fat cheeks, and massive jaw wider than the forehead. The chin-length hair is rendered as irregular ridges formed from connected knobs. Face B has prominent arched browlines, wide eyes, well-proportioned nose with recessed nostrils, indistinct smiling mouth, knob-like chin, and fat cheeks. The chin-length hair is similar to that of side A. CONDITION: Intact. Rim cracked; neck cracked near rim coil. Exterior covered with glossy rainbow iridescence, some large pits, and areas of brown discoloration on neck. Interior opitted with areas of beige weathering. COLLECTION: Thomas E. H. Curtis REMARKS: Same Type as 1923.742 and 1923.522, but blown in a nold that was smaller than that used for either. On the tiny circular indentations on cheeks and around eyes, mouth, and edge of face, as well as between the knobs forming the hair of this jub, se Remarks 1923.742.

Published ReferencesStern, E. Marianne, Roman Mold-blown Glass: the First through Sixth Centuries, "L'Erma" di Bretschneider in Association with the Toledo Museum of Art, Rome, Italy, 1995, cat. no. 162, p. 242, color plate 27, p. 62.