Found this nice Aesthetic movement bronze vase today and is it me or are those marijuana leaves on it? Oh those naughty Victorians!
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j285/zekenstein/IMG_2242.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j285/zekenstein/IMG_2247.jpg
Aesthetic Movement Pot?
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Other Antiques thread on victorianforum.com · started July 27, 2009 by zeke · 3 posts · discussion in 2009.
Found this nice Aesthetic movement bronze vase today and is it me or are those marijuana leaves on it? Oh those naughty Victorians! http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j285/zekenstein/IMG_2242.jpg http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j285/zekenstein/IMG_2247.jpg
I've grown both pot and poppies and I'd say that's what the two plants are. Using these plants recreationally wasn't illegal when your vase was new. Given the interest during in the 1880s in things from Turkey, using pot leaves and poppies as a decorative device fits the mood of the period. It's comparable to using barley and hops as a decorative device or the grape pattern so often seen on wine glasses. Fred
It could also be Japanese Maple leaves, which are almost the same shape as pot leaves. Those would be more in fitting with the beetle on the side. Insects, especially beetles were a popular motif on Japanesque Aesthetic Movement pieces. But the idea of pot on a pot is more amusing.