Milk jug c. 1759 - 1771

This milk jug was crafted at the Weesper porseleinfabriek, its surface adorned with floral motifs. Note the central placement of the blooms, rendered in delicate purples and greens. These aren't merely decorative; flowers, throughout history, have symbolized a myriad of concepts, from love and beauty to transience and mortality. Consider the vanitas paintings of the Dutch Golden Age, where wilting flowers served as stark reminders of life's fleeting nature. Here, however, on this jug, the flowers present a softer narrative, perhaps hinting at domestic tranquility. We see a similar resurgence of floral symbolism during the Renaissance, particularly in Botticelli's "Primavera," where flowers evoke fertility and renewal. The cyclical nature of these symbols—death and rebirth, joy and sorrow—speaks to our shared human experience, resonating deeply within our collective memory, continuously reappearing and adapting across epochs.