Holt Antiques at East Raynham
A Mid 17th Century English Antique Bronze Mortar, Probably Somerset
A Mid 17th Century English Antique Bronze Mortar, Probably Somerset
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This is a good, honest mortar of the kind that served the 17th-century household and stillroom, pounding spices, sugar, herbs and the simples of domestic physic.
It is cast in a warm, golden bronze. The waisted body rises from a broad, flat base to a generously flared rim. It is girdled by two raised cords, one at the shoulder and one about the waist, and flanked by a pair of cast loop handles.
The form is the plain, robust type associated with the bell-founders of the English West Country. Somerset, home to the Purdue foundry at Closworth, among others, is a reasonable possibility. Bell-founders turned their furnaces to mortars between bells, and the same honest metal and confident profile are evident here.
Centuries of use have given the surface a soft, mellow sheen, with traces of old verdigris and the small knocks and nibbles of a working life. It is a lovely object to hold, whether used or displayed on an oak dresser, a kitchen shelf or a library table.
Provenance: England. 17th-century. Previously in The Howard Collection of Oak and Works of Art.
Condition: Good, sound condition for age. There are some small nibbles to the rim, general knocks, scratches, and wear consistent with long use, and traces of old verdigris. The mortar is sold without a pestle.
Dimensions: Height 4⅞ in (12.5 cm); diameter 6½ in (16.7 cm)
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