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Lot Essay
This pitcher is one of fifteen zodiac pitchers commissioned by Ernest B. Dane, a patron of Stone from Brookline, Massachusetts. Each pitcher is decorated with signs of the zodiac and seasonal flowers to represent a certain month of the year. Objects from Arthur Stone's workshop are notable for being superbly hand-crafted. The best of his designs use naturalistic ornament. The original presentation drawings for most of the zodiac pitchers are in the Arthur J. Stone Papers at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
The pitcher is struck with the mark of Herbert Taylor, a craftsman for Stone Associates from 1908 to 1936. In keeping with the principles of the Arts and Crafts movement, which emphasized the individuality of the craftsman, Arthur Stone insisted that each workman mark the piece he worked on with his own mark. Stone was usually responsible for the design and decoration of the objects, while the workman who spent the most time forging or raising the object was given the honor of marking his initial.
The pitcher is struck with the mark of Herbert Taylor, a craftsman for Stone Associates from 1908 to 1936. In keeping with the principles of the Arts and Crafts movement, which emphasized the individuality of the craftsman, Arthur Stone insisted that each workman mark the piece he worked on with his own mark. Stone was usually responsible for the design and decoration of the objects, while the workman who spent the most time forging or raising the object was given the honor of marking his initial.