Heron Mugs
By Dr. Larry Keig
The Heron is one of three mugs in Dugan-Diamond’s fin and feather series. The Heron is a little discussed pattern, even as attractive as its design is. It is, like the Fisherman’s, a Dugan product, likely produced between early 1912 and mid 1913. The other bird mug, the Stork and Rushes, is a product of a later era, one of several shapes made by Diamond in this pat- tern from the mid teens to the early1920s.
Heron and Fisherman’s mugs are both four inches tall. The top and base diameters are almost identical at two and one-half inches. In size and shape, the two mugs are virtually alike.
The patterning of the Heron mug is found mostly on the front side, handle right. The heron, facing left, is wading in a bog, likely waiting to prey on fish and other aquatic life in the area. The lanky plants flanking the bird may be, as John Britt* suggested,** bull rushes, a species indigenous to bodies of water, a natural habitat for this raptorial bird. Rope-like bands above and below the bird and plant life frame the bird, plants, and nondescript pattern elements.
The reverse side, handle left is unpatterned except for plain, raised bands near the top and bottom. These bands connect to the front-side rope-like bands.
Heron mugs are known in amethyst/ purple (most a nearly opaque oxblood) and marigold. The amethyst/purple/ oxblood, once thought to be rare, aren’t actually that hard to hind but are seen much less often than the Fisherman’s. Twenty-four of the amethyst Heron have been recorded as having sold on the HoC database over its decade of existence, as of April 1, 2022. The oxblood example illustrated has to be the Cadillac in the fleet of amethyst/purple Heron mugs. It has stunningly bright blue iridescence and exceptionally fine mold work, including the bird’s full plumage. It sold on one of Doug and Sue Siska’s eBay auctions in March 2022.
The marigold Heron mugs are rare. Until one sold at the Baciborski (Burns) auction in Maryland in early May 2022, none had been recorded as selling since the inception of the HoC database in 2011. Dave Doty lists two earlier sales, one for an astronomical sum in the final decade of the twentieth century, the other in 2009.
The marigold mug that sold in 2009 is now Roger Dunham’s. He bought it absentee on a Wroda auction for much less than he had expected.
When his dad, Reggie Dunham***, learned what it sold for, he told Roger, “You stole it!” Of course, it wasn’t theft, but is, instead, illustrative of the importance of knowing availability when it comes to buying carnival. Roger, as a pre- eminent mug collector, clearly understood what was at hand.
Heron v. Stork and Rushes.
Dugan’s Heron and Diamond’s Stork and Rushes mugs are sometimes misidentified, one with the other. It is easy to tell the difference, though:
(a) A Heron mug has a single bird on its surface. The Stork and Rushes mug has birds all around. (b) The bird on the Heron mug faces left. The four birds on a Stork and Rushes mug face right. (c) A Heron mug is patterned only on its front, handle right. The entire surface of a Stork and Rushes mug is patterned. (d) A Heron mug is bordered top and bottom by rope-like bands on the front and plain bands on the otherwise unpatterned back. The Stork and Rushes mug is bordered at both top and bottom by lattice banding.
Incidentally, it has been mistakenly said that Stork and Rushes mugs were shaped from the tumbler.
The two shapes were, without question, made from different molds.
Notes
*John Britt was a widely recognized authority on carnival glass, especially known for his know- ledge of tumblers and mugs, though his expertise was not limited to those shapes.
**In The Carnival Pump, December 1999, p. 19.
***Reggie Dunham was president of the International Carnival Glass Association from 1992-1996. He was an authority on Grape and Cable among other areas of the hobby. His wife, Linda, has continued to add to their G&C collection.
This article first appeared in the ICGA Pump in the June 2022 issue and is reprinted with permission.