Images(4)

Face Jug

Date1880-1904

Attributed to John A. Roberts (1829 - 1904)

OriginAmerica, Tennessee, Putnam County, Cookeville

MediumStoneware

Dimensions9 1/4" x 6 3/4" x 7 1/2" (23.5 cm. x 17.2 cm. x19.1 cm.)

Credit LineGift of Abby Aldrich Rockefeller

Object number1935.900.1

DescriptionOn a circular base, the form swells slightly outward as it rises, forming an ovoid shape with rounded top that is closed except for two canted spouts in front and back. A stirrup handle originally across the top has been broken off. Small, applied, C-shaped ears appear in front of and below the handle terminals. The front of the jug is shaped as a face, with large, protruding lips; broad, flattened nose, and bulging eyes with small holes representing pupils and slight indentations above the eyes and others at temples, cheeks, and lower "neck" of figure. Color is medium brown, ranging to light at top.
ProvenancePurchased from Clara D. Brown, Nashville, Tennessee
Holger Cahill found this face vessel in Nashville during his 1935 trip through the South in search of examples of southern folk art for Mrs. Rockefeller's collection.

Exhibition(s)