This 19th century salt glazed stoneware bottle is one of my favorite things ever, its surface incised with wonderfully naive, open mouthed figure with sticks for arms and legs and an equally wonderful bird, which the figure looks as if he's about to get on the back of and they'll fly away together. So much life and immediacy in the pair of them, which one imagines were etched into the clay with whatever pointy stick or tool was handy. Just the sort of drawing I am always looking for, but so much better for being perfectly preserved in the clay body of a utilitarian vessel. My guess is this was done by a factory worker as a sort of whimsy, perhaps making use of a slightly imperfect bottle. Late 19th c., I believe, and I think the bottle would have been made to hold beer or ginger beer, or possibly ink.
6 1/2" t x 2 1/2" in diameter and in very good condition, with a few small irregularities native to the bottle..
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