Earthenware drug jar, Middle East, before 1932

Earthenware drug jar, glazed, Islamic

This Islamic drug jar is a typical size, shape and design. Ceramics like this are very difficult to date because the style has changed little over time. The illustration shows two women kneeling in a garden and gathering plants, presumably to use in medical preparations, while a nightingale looks on. Pestles and mortars used to grind up ingredients for drugs and treatments can also be seen. The jar’s contents would have been protected using an age-old technique – a parchment or vellum cover tied off with string.

This jar was purchased in Cairo, Egypt, in 1932 by Captain Johnston-Saint, one of Henry Wellcome’s agents who collected on his behalf.