Apothecary's wooden sign in the shape of a jester's head
- Materials:
- structure, wood, carved and surface, plaster, painted
- Object Number:
- A631335/1
- type:
- shop sign
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LicenseC18 or c19 carved wooden apothecary's sign in form of jester's
Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
C18 or c19 carved wooden apothecary's sign in form of jester's head, European
This carved court jester’s head probably acted as an apothecary sign. The gold coloured ball is supposed to represent a pill or a tablet that can be placed in the jester’s open mouth (and which will come out at the base of the neck). The head is 560 mm in height and would have been eye catching for potential customers walking past, including those who could not read, who would have recognised it as a sign of an apothecary’s shop.
Details
- Category:
- Pharmacy-ware
- Collection:
- Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection
- Object Number:
- A631335
- Materials:
- structure, wood, carved and surface, plaster, painted
- Measurements:
-
overall: 625 mm x 350 mm x 418 mm, 17.12 kg
- type:
- shop sign
- credit:
- Loan, Wellcome Trust
Parts
Gold coloured ball representing a pill or tablet
- Materials:
- structure, wood, carved and surface, plaster, painted
- Object Number:
- A631335/2
- type:
- shop sign
