166. Andrew Mazzaschi, mug

 166. Andrew Mazzaschi, mug 

For Mazzaschi, see item 103.

Dark chocolate brown clay, glazed with brown slip underglaze and a white overglaze; base and bottom of outside wall left unglazed. Weight: 420 g (15 oz). Diameter of rim: 8.2 cm (3-1/4 in); of base 4.8 cm (1-7/8 in); of bottom bulge: 8.8 cm (3-1/2 in). Width with handle: 11.7 cm (4-5/8 in). Height: 10.3 cm (4-1/8 in). The capacity is 450 ml (1-3/4 cup).

This sits on the flat base. The artist’s mark, a square with his initials AHSM inside, was pressed into the base. The walls bulge out to the widest width of the body 3 cm (1-3/8 in) above the base and then curve inward to the waist 6.4 cm (2-1/2 in) above the base; the waist is 7 cm (2-3/4 in) in diameter. From the waist, the walls slope outward to the rim. The exterior of the body was shaped into eight vertical panels running the length of the body. Diagonal grooves running left to right and from top to bottom were carved into the exterior of the body. The ear-shaped handle was attached just below the rim and just below the widest point of the bottom bulge. The interior mirrors the general shape of the body, but without the panels and grooves. The surface of the glazed portion of the mug is smooth but broken by the ridges at the sides of the panels and grooves.

This was first coated with a brown slip and then with a white glaze. The white glaze pooled in the grooves but pulled away from the stress points at the rim and along the edges of the grooves. At one point there is a blue strip running the length of two of the grooves. The brown slip shows through more on the interior, which has band of whitish glaze at the top with a few drips running down into the mug.

This is one of Mazzaschi’s standard patterns--not the best shape in my opinion. The mug is a bit bottom heavy when full. The weight of the liquid pulls it away from the handle. Also, the final couple of tablespoons of liquid pool in the bulge at the bottom and can rush out when the mug is tilted back to get the last bits.

Purchased at Feet of Clay annual winter sale in December 2021.