M. FORD CREECH ANTIQUES & FINE ARTS
BUT NOW WE COME A-WASSAILING....
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"We've been a-while a-wandering Amongst the leaves so green. But now we come a-wassailing* So plainly to be seen. For it's Christmas time, when we travel far and near; May God bless you and send you a happy New Year!"
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FOR THE TOASTING....
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Then the ladle -- the large bowls and pouring lips of these ladles enable service to the most delicate of vessels :
George III Silver Punch Ladles George II, William Garrard, London, 1737, 13-3/8" Long Early George III Silver Toddy Ladle with Queen Anne Coin, c1760 Rosenthal, Berlin, early 19th century,14-1/4" Long
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Silver is also a superb vessel choice. There is something inexplicable about silver and its festive quality. With warm beverages, silver imparts its warming surfaces on a cold night :
Pair of George III Silver Beakers John Lambe, London, 1783 Each crested with a mermaid holding in her dexter hand a dagger proper (for Broadhurst; Cufack, Ireland; Fennor; Goband; Legget, Scotland; Murray-Pennyland, Caithness-shire, Scotland) 3" High / 5.25 oz . Total Weight
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These goblets are grand in size, with an equally grand story behind the crest and motto :
Large Pair of George III Scottish Silver Large Goblets Alexander Gardner & Co., Edinburgh, 1801 8.25” High / 22.6 oz. Of large size and heavy gauge silver, engraved with the crest of a Saracen's head affronte, couped at the shoulders (Fairbairn’s 190/5) below the motto “Will God I Shall” (Menzies) A member of the Menzies family was on Crusade to take the heart of Robert the Bruce to the Holy Land in penance for a murderous act, when they were ambushed in Spain by Saracens - wherein Black Douglas cast the heart, being carried in an iron cask about his neck, into the thick of the Saracens, shouting "Vil God I Zal" - With (Will) God I Shall. The group emerged victorious and Menzies carried the motto. .
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As the drink runs low, a large porcelain handled jar can bring warm replenishment from the kitchen :
First Period Worcester Dutch Jug, Pseudo Meissen Crossed Sword Marks England, c1757 “The Cabbage-Leaf Jug Floral” pattern pseudo-Meissen crossed sword mark verso 8” High
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In case further "enrichment" is needed, "bottle tickets" assist in the choosing. In the mid-18th century, silver bottle tickets (or wine and decanter labels) replaced the hand-written parchment tags on dark glass bottles, decanted in the cellars :
"Georgian Silver Bottle Tickets"
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These exquisite wine "coolers" will hold any additional bottled beverages you choose - either at room temperature or chilled :
Fine Pair of George III / IV Old Sheffield Plate Wine Coolers T & J Creswick, c1820 Each bearing a coat of arms within a rubbed in silver rectangle, marked beneath the footrim with T&J Creswick crossed arrow mark registered in 1811 Arms of Peckham Impaling Pauncefote 10-5/8” High x 8-5/8” Wide
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.... and for just a bit more spice :
George III Silver Nutmeg Grater Samuel Pemberton, Birmingham, 1800 1.5" Long / .3 oz.
Nutmeg has long been a spice of choice for wassail. Nutmeg has been used since the 1500's. During the Middle Ages, nutmeg was revered for its "magical powers" and its ability to ward off danger or evil. People carried the nuts with them in their daily life -- even imitations -- thus bringing about the birth of small graters in wood, silver, and ivory - most with a small space for the nut. Fine silver examples began to appear in England in the late 17th century.
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Wassailing also grew from another ancient Anglo Saxon custom - that of the winter blessings of orchards by singing, chanting and rhyming to the trees to insure the next year's successful harvest. There are 17th century references of wassailing fruit trees in Devon and Sussex. At the same time, revelers began taking their bowls to the streets with the festive combination of caroling, begging and merry-making. Crowds carried a wassail bowl from house to house, singing and offering a drink for a Christmas cake or a coin (a request that no decent man could dare refuse). Some bowls were decorated with greens, flowers and ribbons.
Reveling begins with the Winter Solstice - the shortest day of the year - culminating on the Twelfth Night, January 5th - Christmas Eve before the 1752 calendar change, and the day before the Feast of the Epiphany in the current Christian Calendar.
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"The Wassail Bowl", Sir John Gilbert, 1860 Top : George III Silver-Mounted Lignum Vitae Wassail Bowl, England, c1800, Personal Collection
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Please CLICK the above IMAGES or TITLES for further images and information.
Click here for our other Christmas Catalogs : "...Now Bring Us a Figgy Pudding..." "All Out of Darkness We Have Light..."
"Wassail! Wassail! All Over the Town"...& for the Fruit Trees
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As usual, please email or call if you have any questions.
For tis Christmas time, and whether far or near, May God bless you and send you a Happy New Year.
"Wæs Hal!"
Millicent Ford Creech
901-761-1163 (gallery) / 901-827-4668 (cell)
581 S. PERKINS ROAD / LAURELWOOD COLLECTION / MEMPHIS, TN 38117 Hours : Wed.-Sat. 11-6, or by appointment Complimentary Gift Wrapping
mfcreech@bellsouth.net or mfordcreech@gmail.com
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But now we come a-wassailing, so plainly to be seen; Christmas
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