Historical information

This measuring container would have been used by chemists, doctors and nurses to accurately measure a tablespoonful of medicine or other liquid or substance equivalent to half an ounce in weight. It could also have been used in households for the same purpose. It would have been in use in the 19th century and perhaps the first six decades of the 20th century. Today glass or plastic containers would be used.

Significance

This container, although damaged, is of interest as an example of the type of measuring container used by chemists and doctors in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It has no known local provenance but will be useful for display.

Physical description

This is a cream-coloured ceramic medicine measuring container. It will hold half an ounce or a tablespoonful. It is circular in shape, tapering down from the top to the bottom. It has a rim at the top which is cracked and partly broken away.

Inscriptions & markings

‘½ oz. To Lower Rim (a tablespoonful)’