Staffordshire Figures 1780-1840

Although she is certainly not the most common of classical figures, Hygeia is quite well known to collectors. Hygiea is the goddess of health. She healed the sick by administering the bile of the gorgon Medusa. For this reason, she is depicted with an ewer and bowl that hold Medusa’s bile. The story gets better: In ancient statuary, Hygeia frequently feeds a snake from a bowl.  Why a snake? The snake symbolizes healing or rebirth because of its ability to shed its skin.

So now we have the nasty stuff behind us, enjoy this lovely example of Hygeia.

Along the same lines, there is a VERY large Staffordshire figure of a lady washing her hands. The example below is in the Willett Collection. She measures 27-1/2" and she weighs a TON!

Stella Beddoe was such a good sport about helping Malcolm Hodkinson and me haul this figure onto a table to photograph. Believe me, she is H-E-A-V-Y, and it took 3 of us to get her in place. The figure is normally mounted on a low square base and I assume this example has lost its base--but we did not have what it took to flip this lady over. But is she not GORGEOUS?  I would make house room for her in a moment...I guess she would need her own room or her own house.

This large figure is often described as Purity, which always has me a little befuddled. Yes, it is nice to keep your hands clean....but I can find no classical references to Purity. Sometimes she is described as Hygeia, but I think that is only because of the connection between hand-washing and hygiene. As you can see, she has none of Hygeia's attributes.

So do we have other ladies fashioned on the same theme? I thought not until I found the figure below. She is pictured in John Hall's book Staffordshire Portrait Figures. Height merely 11"--and here's the great part: this figure is marked with the rare mark of Lakin & Poole. 

The figure is described in the caption as Hygeia. John Hall clearly believed this lady with the water bowl to be Hygeia, despite the lack of ewer and snake. An understandable mistake, but I have been no happier with this naming. Unfortunately, until now I have had nothing to suggest as an improvement.

And then it happened!  In the Glaisher Collection recently, I found yet another Lakin & Poole figure of a lady washing her hands--- but this time she has a title: Ariadne.

My problems are not yet over. I cannot for the life of me determine the connection between Ariadne and a water bowl. Along the way, I learned that Ariadne was a Greek goddess who died in childbirth. At an event honoring her memory, a young man lay on the ground in the vicarious pangs of labor. Hmm...does this not only happen to husbands?  Anyway, if you know why Ariadne should be holding that bowl, please share.