Jug

Paul Preuning

ca. 1547–50 · Lead-glazed earthenware, some tin-glaze · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Adorned with the likenesses of a Catholic emperor and Protestant elector, this detailed jug showcases the connections between common entertainments and Reformation politics. The dancing piper and drummer that flank Adam and Eve were symbols of revolt derived from anti-Catholic prints that circulated during the 1525 Peasants’ War, the largest uprising in Europe prior to the French Revolution of 1789. The painted arms of the Imhoff family of Nuremberg on the front were added later. This work was seized from Oscar Bondy (d. 1944) by Nazi officials in 1938 in Vienna and restituted to his widow, Elisabeth Bondy, in 1948.

Artist

Paul Preuning

Date

ca. 1547–50

Medium

Lead-glazed earthenware, some tin-glaze

Culture

German, Nuremberg

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

Gift of R. Thornton Wilson, in memory of Florence Ellsworth Wilson, 1954