Undercover at the 2018 Reconstructive & Experimental Archaeology Conference REARC

By Elska á Fjárfelli and Chrestienne de Waterdene

 My first colonial ale called Dear Old Mum, a spiced wheat, at Chowning’s Tavern in Colonial Williamsburg. (Photo R. Mazza).

The 8^th annual Reconstructive and Experimental Archaeology Conference hosted by EXARC drew speakers and participants from many parts of the world. The REARC conference was once again hosted by Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, from October 18^th to the 20^th. Mistress Chrestienne deWaterdene and I drove down together to check out the event. Friday was reserved for the presentation of papers, by students and researchers alike, demonstrating the wealth of information and practical skills available within the EXARC community. Saturday was filled with numerous demonstrations in which the conference attendees could participate and museum visitors could watch and learn.

My first academic paper, that started life as an uncooperative IceDragon brewing entry. (Photo S. Stull, occasional SCAdian and a conference presenter)

The presentations ranged from practical recreations like bird bone flute making and weaving with captive reed beads to duplicate pottery impressions, to the use of recreated objects such as determining if Ötzi’s tools were for hunting or for warfare, and the function of experimental archaeology within different types of classrooms. Some researchers presented a follow up on previous papers, like Neil Peterson with his ongoing Viking bead furnace project. Some might look for resources not yet found – the joy of Caitlin Gaffney after finding a possible source for a reproduction medieval knife to carve her bone flutes was absolutely contagious. And some were looking to network: David Spence asked for additional projects for his Experimental Archaeology in High School and left with numerous contacts and suggestions. Each and every paper had some unique view, some unusual bit of information – as the practical aspects of experimental archaeology requires a more interdisciplinary approach than traditional academics, conferences like REARC are essential. You just never know from what discipline, from which subject, the answer to the question you did not even realize you had could come from. I personally was amazed to find that the gist of my paper, to not take words at their literal modern definition, was independently repeated in another paper – to have my initial interpretation validated via an independent source right then and there.

The work stations, surrounded by assorted Colonial-era garments being altered or repaired.

During the lunch break Chrestienne and I quietly excused ourselves and took a quick look at the Annual Open House at the nearby Colonial Williamsburg Costume Design Center. Here, the staff fits, designs, creates and dresses Colonial Williamsburg's costumed interpreters. The clothes range from silk gowns and caps for the ladies, to cotton and linen wear for the middling sort, to handmade leather gloves and embroidered coats for the male gentry. Ordinarily, the Costume Design Center is only open by appointment, except one day a year, when it opens the doors for all to show and tell. And we made sure to be there! It was a cornucopia of fabrics and embellishments, and the workstations were to die for…

Talon Silverhorn showing his beaded belt made using Fingerweaving. He also told about how his Tribe uses this technique to record and tell stories, right up to our modern days.

I also learned that the colonial interpreters do not make nor own their costumes, it is this department that researches, designs, fits and creates for everyone on the payroll. Except for the Native Americans, it seems. We did not see any Native American wardrobes out in storage or on display, and from talking with Native interpreter Talon Silverhorn we learned that most make their own as part of their tribal community and heritage.

Bill Schindler, experimental archaeologist and co-host of the National Geographic show The Great Human Race. I enjoyed our conversation over a craft beer at the hotel, and even taught him a thing or two about historic mead brewing.

The keynote speaker for this year was Bill Schindler, an experimental archaeologist with Washington College and part of the Eastern Shore Food Labs. His quite engaging presentation on Fusion: ancestral diets, modern culinary techniques, and experimental archaeology was well received, and left the audience with a number of questions to think on. This paper was perfect for our younger generation as they are now growing up in an environment which might be more hostile to them than they would surmise, and where this area of research, experimental archaeology, could help shed light on where to go from here. The connection between human biology and our diet, and the impact industrialization has had on our health to the point where humans, and our pets, can be both obese and malnourished, is not only fascinating from an academic point of view, but relevant to the survival of our species.

This years’ demonstrations were two part: the practice of throwing atlatl and observing and shooting early bows, combined with the technique of smelting and casting bronze and making Viking era glass beads. Unfortunately, while the weather was absolutely gorgeous on Friday, by the time Saturday came around it had changed to intermittent drizzle and rain. But that did not stop us from having a go at each of the stations, and appreciate the added value of tent coverings at the metallurgy and flamework areas. While I would have loved to try Ötzi’s replica bow as initially intended, Manuel Lizarralde did not feel comfortable to have it out in soaking rain as it was not yet waterproof. I did get to shoot a fire hardened black locust Native American self bow, weatherproofed with bear grease, and even hit the target center. Conference host Tim Messner enjoyed the primitive tattoo kit and extant stone tools that Talon Silverhorn, Native American interpreter, brought to share – and almost talked him into a tattoo demo on the spot.

Fergus Milton, with help from David Spence, melting bronze to do a lost-wax mold casting later in the afternoon.

At the station near the Blacksmith area we enjoyed Fergus Milton’s bronze casting demonstrations - with help on the bellows by David Spence - using a small furnace constructed on site from local clay, and aerated with a primitive leather-bag bellows. He began the day by smelting the bronze and preparing two molds, and poured the molds mid-afternoon. Several museum guests returned specifically to witness the casting, after stopping by periodically to keep an eye on the proceedings.

Chrestienne making her first Viking glass bead over a charcoal bead furnace under the expert supervision of Neil Peterson (a SCAdian of old). She’s wearing the loaner sweater Neil provided (available to those wearing flammable man-made fiber fabrics). Wool is a safer fabric to protect against sparks and burning embers.

At the same time Neil Peterson had his coal-fed bead furnace up and running for conference attendees to try their hand at making a Viking glass bead. His station was in continuous use throughout the day and many of the attendees left with a precious homemade bead in their pocket. Surprisingly, participants often had more trouble with the coordination required to operate the bellows effectively, me included, than they had creating a simple bead.

  

Left: Pouring molten tin into a cuttlefish mold encased in fresh clay as support. Bottom: The mold is only able to be used once, becoming burned during use. Although tin is used to demonstrate, it is a softer metal than the master used for the impression.

Finally, before packing up, Fergus Milton did a quick demonstration of cuttlefish casting for David Spence to consider showing to his highschool students. He used some tin he had on hand, and as it had a lower melting temperature than the bronze, it quickly became molten and he was able to show how the porous nature of the cuttlefish bone lends itself well to making a quick mold. It takes in a good amount of detail from the master used to press into the material, and feels a bit like a dense, fine Styrofoam when pushing a metal object in to make an impression.

To cap off this wonderful experience, the resident founders at Williamsburg had invited Fergus Milton (burgundy shirt) for a special bronze casting demonstration at their shop on Sunday morning. To experience the prehistoric process, so closely followed by the much more refined methods of the 18th century Geddy Foundry, was an appropriate ending to an otherwise perfect immersive weekend of reconstructive and experimental archaeology. We are ready to come back for more next year!

Insistent cow, with bull calf, determined to charm snacks from us! (Photo: R. Mazza)

All photos credited to S. Verberg, unless otherwise stated.

For details on the presented papers: https://exarc.net/rearc/archive/2018

https://exarc.net/issue-2018-04/mm/conference-review-rearc-2018

The obscure ingredient Gillyflower as used in medieval culinary & cosmetic recipes.

Is it this? Or is it that? What is it?!

As part of my interest in medieval soap making I come across some rather strange and unusual ingredients. Some only look strange at first glance as the medieval word has undergone modernization. Some describe ingredients no longer used in this way, either because they are hard to mass-produce, or because they are now known to be detrimental to our health. Every unknown ingredient I come across digging through countless medicinal and cosmetic soap recipes is carefully checked out and these sometimes obvious, often times obscure, ingredients are compiled in my Glossary for future reference.

For example, when using google translate to translate muschio, its first hit will be moss. While plausible, when looked at the word in context of the recipe, it is unlikely moss was added as a scrub. What was meant here was the scent musk, a much more appropriate addition as the recipe came from a book about perfumery.

Same with fate poluere - when put into google translate it comes up as fairies dust... Would we really think renaissance Italians caught fairies, dried them, ground them up, and made such good soap Mona Lisa literally seems to glow? I'd like to, though it does seem more likely it is only an older way of spelling fare polvere which means to make into dust, making a whole lot more sense considering the rest of the recipe...

Then what about the botanical garofano? When looked up in the 1611 medieval Italian to medieval English dictionary the Florio the translation given for garofano (garofani) is both cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) and gillyflower, also called carnation (Dianthus caryphyllus), and leaves the matter up for interpretation. Gillyflower as an ingredient makes an appearance in several non-English language soap recipes, including the Italian Notandissimi and the Dutch Dat Batement van Recepten. My curiosity was peaked, but a conclusive period source for either interpretation was nowhere to be found. The 1771 Encyclopedia Brittanica gives the alternate name clove pink for carnation, indicating some sort of connection between clove and carnation. But while it mentions the term gillyflower can be any of several flowering plant species, the spice clove is not listed among them. If they truly are two different plant species, then how can gillyflower mean both in medieval texts?

Scadian Italian cosmetics enthusiast Giata (Gigi Coulson) translated this intriguing recipe from Caterina Sforza to treat horrible breath, to include cloves:

A guerire una persona a chi puzzasse la bocca o vero el fiato.
Piglia 1 onca garofani, 5 onca cinamomo fino, 5 onca tirats, con un terzo de finissimo vino fa pistare et fa bollire et danne mezzo bichieri per volta.
To heal a person who has horrible breath.
Take 1 ounce cloves, 5 ounces ground cinnamon, 5 ounces tirats (sic), and mix with a third of finest wine, then do grind and boil it and take a dose of half a glass at a time.

A handful of cooking recipes in the 16-17th century Martha Washington’s Cookbook also include gillyflower as an ingredient. Here, the translator states gillyflower is what is now known as the clove-scented pink, or carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus). According to her, gilly comes from French girofle, for clove, and is pronounced jilly. As evidenced by the older forms jellyflower and July Flowers it most likely always was; both are fine examples of the substitution of a word of known meaning for an unknown one of similar sound. Clove (Caryophyllus aromaticus) comes from the French clou de girofle, because of its resemblance to a nail, while the French girofle likely came by way of the Greek caryophyllon. Cloves are the dried flower buds of the clove tree.

Clove gilliflower image from A Sip through Time.

The collection of old brewing recipes A Sip through Time by Cindy Renfrow also gives clove gilliflower of the family Caryophilli as an alternate name of gilliflower. Maybe through confusing nomenclature it had become a case of mistaken identity? The Dutch books of secrets soap recipes refer to gillyflower as groffelsnavel, which the Medieval Dutch internet translator Historic Dictionaries on the Internet also translates to gilliflower. At first glance, groffelsnavel (Dutch), groffiaat (Belgium), garofano (Italian), girofle (French), girofre (Spanish) and a number of other alternates all lead back to gillyflower as a carnation.

Then the medieval Dutch translator had one last thing to say: "The word was also (including in the Roman Languages) used for the clove (Caryophyllus aromaticus) -1892". In our modern time the Latin name for cloves is Syzygium aromaticum, but in history the Latin name for cloves was Caryophyllus aromaticus - very similar to the Latin for gillyflower which is Dianthus caryphyllus, and indicates both are part of the family Caryophilli. In history cloves and carnations were classified as belonging to the same family. They had similar physical characteristics (with both the bottom of the flower is sort of nail shaped), were thus likely assumed to have similar properties, and were used interchangeably. Apparently, it is up to context and personal interpretation to decide whether the gillyflower called for is the spice cloves or the herb carnation.

Gilliflower is found mentioned in several recipes, both in personal cosmetics (scented soap) and in brewing. Following are a selection of recipes to illustrate the importance of context:

For Clarre. Take cloues and gilofre quibible, and mac? canll' gygner and spiguale off an in poudre and temper hem with good wyne and the iij. parte as much of fyn honi that is clarified and streine hem thorough a cloth and doo it into a clene vessel, and it may be made wyth ale &c?.
For Clare.
Take cloves and gillyflower quibible [could be qui belle, or very beautiful], and mac? canll' [much candied?] ginger and spiguale off [spigot, or drain off?] and in powder, and mix them with good wine and the iij. part as much of fine honey that is clarified and strain them through a cloth and do it in a clean vessel, and it may be made with ale, etc.

In this recipe from The Customs of London: Otherwise Called Arnold's Chronicle (1503) gillyflowers & cloves are listed separately, by name, and since gillyflower is likely described as beautiful, my guess is that carnation is meant here.

To Pickle cloue gilliflowrs cowslips burrage & marrigoulds
Clip your flowers clean from the whites & cover them over in white wine vinegar, sweetned with sugar, & shake the glasses you put them in often, & when you discover your pickle to shrink, add more to it.
Since this 16th to 17th century recipe by Martha Washington describes gillyflowers as flowers, it likely indicates that carnations were meant, as opposed to the dried out flower bud of the spice clove.

Carnations, and the double-cloaue Gillofers

from the 1578 Nievve Herbal or Historie of Plantes by Gerard Dewes.

From Dat batement van recepten, a 16th century book of secrets, comes the following recipe for gilliflower soap:

133. Om seepe girofflat te maken.
Neemt een pont seepen, set die te weeken in rooswater drie dagen in de sonne; ende als ghi v seepe maken wilt, neemt een vnce ende een half groffelsnagelen wel gestooten, ende die helft van die selue nagelen sult ghi in v seepe doen, ende dat seer wel mengelende. Met dander helft doet dat hierna volcht. Neemt een cleyn potken met rooswater, ende doeghet ouer 't vier sieden, ende alst beginnen sal te sieden, doeter die reste van dat groffelsnagelpoeder inne, ende neemt den pot van dat vier, ende decten seer wel tot dat die bobbelen ghecesseert zijn, ende dattet water law geworden si, dan roeret met een houtken, ende also roerende, mengelet met v seepe. Ende is 't dat ghijer een luttel beniuyn toe doen wilt, ghi moeget doen, ooc sult ghi v seepe in een busse doen, ende si sal goede ruecke aennemen.
133. To make gilliflower soap.
Take a pound of soap, put it to soak in rosewater three days in the sun, and if you want to make soap, take an ounce and a half gillyflowers well crushed, and half of these same nagelen should you put into the soap, and mix very well. With the other half you do as follows. Take a clean pot with rosewater, and cook it over the fire, and when it starts to boil, add the rest of the gillyflower powder, and take the pot off the fire, and cover it well until the bubbles seized, and that the water is luke warm, then stir with wood, and also stir, mixing with the soap. And if you would like add a little benzoin, which you should do, also you should put the soap in a container, and it shall take on a good scent.

Cloue tree image from the 1633 The Herball, or, General Historie of Plantes by John Gerard.

In this case the giroflatt (alternate of girofle) is also identified with nagelen, an adverb used in modern Dutch for kruidnagelen ("herb-nails"). Kruidnagelen specifically means cloves therefore in this case I would be confident to say here giroflatt means the spice cloves.

From The Housekeeper's Pocket Book by Sarah Harrison, 1739 (as reprinted in A Sip Through Time by Cindy Renfrow, p.154):

To make clove gillyflower wine.
Take six gallons and a half of spring water, and twelve pounds of sugar, and when it boils skim it, putting in the white of eight eggs, and a pint of cold water, to make the scum rise: let it boil for an hour and a half, skimming it well; then pour it into an earthen vessel, with three spoonfulls of barm; then put in a bushel of clove-gillyflower clip'd and beat, stir them well together, and the next day pit six ounces of syrup of citron into it, the third day put in three lemons sliced, peel and all, the fourth day tun it up, stop it close for ten days, then bottle it, and put a piece of sugar in each bottle.

In this instance it is clear from context as a weedy herb is used, it is not describing the dry spice cloves, but the fresh state of carnations.

My conclusion: from the handful of brewing and cooking recipes I found using gillyflowers, most seem to indicate using carnation, either as a fresh or dried herb. Most of the perfumed cosmetic recipes seem to use cloves, as a powdered or crushed ingredient. It makes sense that if powdered or crushed gillyflower is called for it is likely to mean cloves, and if fresh or dried gillyflower is called for it is likely to mean carnation. And take a closer look at the provided images of both carnation and clove - the bottoms of the flowers on both plants do look strikingly similar…


Published in the June 1st, 2017 of the Aethelmearc Gazette:
https://aethelmearcgazette.com/2017/06/01/is-it-this-or-is-it-that-what-is-it/


Bibliography:
Arnold, Richard (1503) The Customs of London, London: Printed for F. C. and J. Rivington, et. al., 1811.

Braekman, Willy L. (ed.) (1990) Dat Batement van Recepten (House of Recipes). Brussel: Omirel UFSAL. Likely translated and reprinted from the 1525 Venetian Opera nuova intitolata Dificio di recette. http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/_bat002wlbr01_01/colofon.htm (© dbnl 2009)

Coulson, Gigi (Giata Magdalena Alberti). Caterina Sforza’s Gli Experimenti, A Translation. Self Published. https://labelladonna.net/

Dewes, Gerard. (1578) Nievve Herbal or Historie of Plantes. London.
            This encyclopedia has a nice chapter on the carnation.

Encyclopedia Brittanica; https://www.britannica.com/plant/gillyflower

The Florio 1611 Dictionary Search:
http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/florio/search/search.cgi

Gerard, John. (1633) The Herball, or, General Historie of Plantes.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Houghton_STC_11751_The_herball,_or,_General_historie_of_plantes,_1633_-_clove.jpg

Hess, Karen. (1996) Martha Washington’s Booke of Cookery and Booke of Sweatmeats. Columbia University Press.

Historische Woordenboeken op Internet (Historic Dictionaries on the Internet).
http://gtb.inl.nl/?owner=MNW

Renfrow, Cindy. (1996) A Sip Through Time, a Collection of old Brewing Recipes. Self published.

Translations by Susan Verberg, unless otherwise noted.

About the Aquamanile.

As part of my research into medieval soap I stumbled onto the ritual of hand washing at the table, and the use of whimsical pitchers to pour the water to do so. As black soap is not all that visually exciting, a beautiful medieval aquamanile reproduction would be the perfect eye candy for my A&S displays. Except all the ones I found available were in Europe... and as shipping is worrisome, and prohibitively expensive, I took the plunge to build my own.

An aquamanile, from the Latin words for water (aqua) and hand (manus), is an animal- or human-shaped vessel used for washing the hands. Medieval European examples date from the 12^th C through the 15^th C and, apart from curious shapes, have two water openings, one for pouring and one for filling, and a handle. According to the St. Thomas Guild website, the name aquamanile for the vessel was not invented until the 19^th C.: the medieval name for the aquamanile was lavoratorium, and the bowl receiving the water was the manilia. But as most resources including the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) designate these vessels as aquamanile, I will do the same.

From Francis Seager’s School of Virtue (1557) comes this poem to direct children to bring their parents water to wash when clearing the table after a meal:

Then on the table                  attend with all diligénce,

It for to void,                      when done have thy parénts.

Each side of the cloth            do thou turn in ;

Folding it up,                      at the higher end begin.

A clean towel then                 on the table spread,

The towel wanting,                 the cloth take instead.

The basin and ewer                to the table then bring,

In place convenient,                 their pleasure abiding.

When thou shalt see              them ready to wash,

The ewer take up,                 and be not too rash

In pouring out water               more than will suffice.

         Chatto, 1908

           

The hundreds of surviving examples show the popularity of aquamanilia during the Middle Ages. The aquamanile was a sculptural vessel, often cast in copper alloy using the lost-wax method, and made in many forms like lions, griffins, horses, unicorns, stags, dragons and even men. Aquamanilia were important items for religious hand washing rituals, but also became a luxurious show piece at a Lords’ table. For the upper class clientele pottery aquamanilia were available, evident by their mention in two inventories of medieval citizens in the city of Deventer, the Netherlands (St. Thomas). Regular sets of ewers and bowls are found in many inventories, but the aquamanile surely is the pinnacle of medieval hand washing equipment.

The aquamanile from Castle Hoensbroek which was found in the castle moat. The figure probably represents a ram. The aquamanile is dated to the mid 14th century and decorated with green-tin glaze. 

Animal shaped were not a new idea. Late Roman, early Byzantine, and Islamic cultures had a vibrant tradition of hollow-cast vessels in animal form. Although late Roman and early Byzantine examples were made to contain oil rather than water, they could be seen as precursors of medieval aquamanila in how they were made, as well as in the use of animal forms. Islamic aquamanilia could have been among the luxury items brought to the West through diplomatic gift exchange, trading routes, or even as booty from the Crusades. Western European metalworkers, proficient in the casting of solid objects, relearned a set of skills that had been lost in the West since antiquity when adapting the designs of Islamic hollow-cast vessels to create aquamanilia. (MET)

Example of a copper alloy Dragon aquamanile from The Metropolitan Museum, one of the largest and most important collections of aquamanilia in the world. This dragon aquamanile is supported by its legs in front and on the tips of its wings behind, and has a tail that curls up into a handle. It was filled through an opening in the tail, now missing its hinged cover. Water was poured out through the spout formed by the hooded or cowled figure held between the dragon's teeth. In addition to its visual power, this aquamanile is distinguished by fine casting, visible in the carefully chased dragon's scales and other surface details.

As is indicated by its name, aquamanilia were used by the general populace to wash the hands. Initially aquamanilia were used in both Christian and Jewish religious ritual, but by the 12^th C the vessels start appearing outside the church, and at the dinner table. The aquamanile would be used in combination with a wide, shallow bowl, usually made of metal, and sometimes of pottery, and with towels made of linen, plain white or damask, which could be striped. (Heise 2007)

“Sometimes guest were formally conducted to an adjoining lavatory accompanied by the music of a minstrel, but ordinarily they remained in the hall and received from the ewer the warm water; often perfumed with rose-leaves, thyme lavender, sage, chamomile, marjoram or orange peel, one or all. The water and the towels were, of course, presented in the order of social standing of the guest, and it was esteemed a signal honor thus to serve a king or a great noble. In accord with the dignity of the ceremony the water jug and the basin in great houses were often of gold or silver curiously wrought and enameled.”

Edward Mead in his The English Medieval Feast, 1967. (Heise 2007)

There are several period scented water recipes available to use with the aquamanile. For instance Sir Hugh Plat’s Delightes for Ladies lists “An Excellent Washing Water Very Cheap” which is distilled and “Diverse sorts of sweet handwaters made suddenly or extempore with extracted oils of spices.” which uses extracted essential oils. Another way to make scented water would be by infusion as suggested by Le Menagier de Paris, a 14th century cook- and housekeeping book, where a description is given for water used to wash the hands:

“Pour faire eaue a laver mains sur table, mectez bouillir de la sauge, puis coulez l'eaue et faictes reffroidier jusques a plus que tiede. Ou vous mectez comme dessus comomille et marjolaine, ou vous mectez du romarin, et cuire avec l'escorche d'orenge. Et aussi feuilles de lorier y sont bonnes.”

“To make water for washing hands at table: Boil sage, then strain the water and cool it until it is a little more than lukewarm. Or use chamomile, marjoram or rosemary boiled with orange peel. Bay leaves are also good.” (Greco 2009)

The Scented Waters I made for use in the A&S Competition:

Water scented with sage: home grown and dried sage leaves, boiled with rain water. Sage helps in keeping skin healthy, including skin inflammations like eczema.

Water scented with Rosemary and Orange: personally harvested rosemary (from the Carolina’s, where it is grown as an ornamental) and dried orange peels, boiled with rain water. The acids in orange peels act as a natural degreaser.

Rosemary (family of sage) helps in keeping skin healthy and has an antibacterial effect.

My Project.

Years ago I played in a university ceramics studio, but hand building sculptures was never really my thing. For the past few years I’ve stored a small kick wheel but had no kiln. After a friend of mine offered to bisque and glaze our projects my kid and I played around for a winter or two, with the idea to reclaim clay from our property and throw small Viking type cups & bowls. Trying to build an aquamanile is lightyears beyond that, and not a minor decision, so in the hope one would work out, I started work on three different shapes.

Aquamanile in the shape of a ram from Castle Hoensbroek.

I wanted to do this one as it was found in the Netherlands. But for the life of me I could not throw a pitcher to then narrow the waist without collapsing the clay, so this design bit the dust in the throwing stage. The bump on the rear of this ram seems to indicate it was thrown as one shape, with that being the plugged neck.

Aquamanile in the shape of a stag.

Found in Rye, UK and dated to the 14^th C. It is 24 cm high and 35.5 cm long and made from red earthenware with lead glaze. The body is tubular, the antlers lie back to form the handle, and the hind legs are missing. The body seems to be made from a large tubular vessel with a smaller vase chest and a bud vase head.

Aquamanile in the shape of a ram.

This aquamanile is assumed to be from Scarborough, England and made between 1250 to 1350 CE. It is made from earthenware with green glaze and measures 23.9 cm by 29.2 cm by 13.3 cm. It seems to be made from two larger jars, with a small bud vase as the head and a separately thrown neck as the water intake. It likely is missing its horns, from the absence of glaze on the sides of the head.

Short Glossary:

Bisque: The first stage of heating clay. Bisque dry means the object is ready to be bisqued. A clay object first is bisqued heated so it is hard, then glaze is added and it is heated again to melt the glaze. So each glazed piece is heated twice, once to harden, and once to glaze.

Leather Hard: letting clay dry for a while (often overnight) to partially dry out to a stage where it will be sturdy enough to withstand adding things onto it, like handles, legs etc.

Kiln: the oven clay is fired or heated in (I borrow the use of a friend’s kiln).

Slip: very watered down clay which can be used as glue.

Score, scoring: drawing lines into the clay with a sharp object to increase the surface of where two pieces of clay will be attached. Slip is added to cover the inscribed lines to soften the clay for maximal stickiness and thus adherence.

Wheel: the apparatus clay is thrown on. A heavy weight is kicked around an axle with a small tray at the top, the heavy weight keeps the small tray turning with just enough time between kicks to throw shapes out of clay. I use a mechanical kick wheel which looks like and works very similar to the kick wheels used in medieval times.

Published April 15th, 2017 in the Aethelmearc Gazette:
https://aethelmearcgazette.com/2017/04/15/the-aquamanile-a-whimsical-way-to-proper-table-manners/

Bibliography

Amman, Jost (1568) Panoplia omnium lliberalium mechanicarum (Book of Trades); Der

Haffner (The Potter), one of 133 woodcut book illustrations. Frankfurt: Sigmund Feierabend. The British Museum.

http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details/collection_image_gallery.aspx?assetId=1127437001&objectId=3106145&partId=1

Chatto, Edith Rickert Francis Seager’s School of Virtue (1557) part of the Babees Book:

Medieval Manners for the Young: Done into Modern English from Dr. Furnivall S. Texts, p.151 London / New York: Duffield & Co., 1908

Greco, Gina L. & Rose, Chrisine M. (ed.) The Good Wife’s Guide (Le Ménagier de Paris, 1393).

Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2009.

Heise, Jennifer (2007) Hygiene of the Middle Ages and Rennaissance, Volume One: Personal

Grooming The Compleat Anachronist #136

Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET): Medieval Aquamanilia

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/aqua/hd_aqua.htm

Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET): Dragon aquamanile

http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/471287

Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET): Stag aquamanile

http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O9254/aquamanile-unknown/

Plat, Sir Hugh (1609) Delightes for Ladies. London: printed by Peter Short.

http://eebo.chadwyck.com/home

St. Thomas Guild: Medieval Table Manners.

http://thomasguild.blogspot.com/2013_10_01_archive.html

Virginia & albert Museum (VA): Ram aquamanile

http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/477815

Waterdene, Chrestiennede: Facebook post Stag Aquamanile.

https://www.facebook.com/ChrestiennedeWaterdene/posts/950022085106635?theater