Back when I was editor of "die Kunde", I published an editorial plea for articles, or material that could be used in an article. A couple of our members were kind enough to respond, and I received a large envelope from Pat Manusov, at that time the SCI Librarian, who had also responded to the plea. The envelope contained a photo copy of a book from the SCI archives. The book, published in 1943 by the Southern Comfort Corporation of St. Louis, MO., is titled, "The Art of Gracious Tippling from 800 B.C.."

The book contains photos of drinking vessels from (obviously) 800 B.C. to modern times and includes recipes for drinks using Southern Comfort. These drinks all have names that are reflective of 1943, such as, "Scarlet O'Hara Cocktail," "The Rhett Butler," which is commented on as being "for men only," "The Mint Julep," and the "Memphis Cocktail." In those days, unlike today, an epic film like "Gone With the Wind" obviously had a commercial life of more than three weeks. Also in keeping with the times, the words German, or Germany, appear nowhere in the book, Continental, Prussian and Bavarian are used instead.

The drinking vessels depicted in the book were in the private collection of the gentleman who owned the Southern Comfort Corporation, and included a number of rare and exotic pieces.

While checking the copy for possible material, a single picture caught my eye, and I thought, "Hmmm, there's a piece that looks familiar." The piece in question (see figure 1), had a caption titled, "CONTINENTAL SALT GLAZE TANKARD - 1749." The caption went on to say that, "Here is another of the many excellent specimens of tankards. Many of these tankards were used much in the manner of loving cups, which were passed around the table at a marriage, or other ceremony, the entire company drinking from the same cup."

FIGURE 1.

There could only be one reason for the attribution to "1749" and that is that the stein was dated 1749. Otherwise, why not "ca. 1750," or "mid-eighteenth century?" Then I knew why the stein looked familiar, it was sitting on a shelf in the next room (see figure 2). The lid is engraved with the initials F. A. v F. and the date 1749 (see figure 3). By the way, the stein is certainly large enough to be passed around at a celebration for all to drink from, it holds a full 2 liters.

FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 3.

The stein came into my possession several years ago, and I can't help but wonder where it has been those 50 plus years, between its appearance in the Southern Comfort book, and the time I bought it. How many owners did it have in that time period, not to mention the 193 years prior to that? I often wish these steins could talk, what a story they could tell.

When I bought this piece it was attributed to Saxony, but I recently ran across a picture in a book published by the Frankfurt Museum for Arts and Crafts, that depicts a stoneware jug with similar coloration and decor that is attributed to the Westerwald, so its place of origin is somewhat in question at the moment.

In the last paragraph I said I bought the stein, but at a recent chapter meeting, Tony Biagi pointed out that we don't really own them, they belong to history, and we only borrow them for a short while. Tony is correct of course, and I'll add that we also have an obligation to take good care of these borrowed items so that the next person to take them on loan, can enjoy them as much as we do.

NOTE: To further confirm that this is the same stein, there is a small factory flaw visible in the 1943 photo which is also present on the stein I have on my shelf.

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