The black figures on this rosso antico jug--a favorite Wedgwood combination for classical designs-- present a bacchanalian subject, but of the most refined and indeed innocent sort. Chubby putti and satyrs, in truth babies, amuse themselves in playful teasing ways. The presence of the "thyrsus," a pine cone topped staff indicates that one of the boys may be the infant Bacchus. Scattered trees and a set of pan pipes suggest an arcadian grove.  An overflowing basket of grapes and nearby amphora remind us of the harvest and wine making to come.  Wedgwood finishes their bacchanalian essay with a ring of grapevine around the neck of their graceful club shape jug.

Lady Diana Beauclerk--a noblewoman and artist who, before her two marriages, was in fact the Lady Diana Spencer of the eighteenth century--produced sketches for these groups during the lifetime of Josiah I. A friend of Horace Walpole and Samuel Johnson, she illustrated a number of books as well. Wedgwood has made good use of these designs, well into the nineteenth century. There are no clearer examples of the refined, playful, rococo approach to a classical subject. Plus the boys simply overflow with charm.