A William & Mary Lignum Vitae Mortar & Pestle | Archive

An impressive Lignum Vitae mortar and pestle weighing in at 12lbs – the mortar 10″ high and the pestle 16″  Here the expected characteristic variations of colour don’t disappoint with hues that range from rich reds to pale ochre’s beneath an unviolated surface patinated and vibrant with character – while it remains in unwaxed condition.

Lignum Vitae – following its arrival in Europe in the 16th century it was soon prized for its hardness and density of grain necessarily meaning it was extremely heavy and hard wearing, while a further quality it was found it had was that it was impervious to liquids – beyond this a mystique arose surrounding it that it had certain ‘healing’ properties and that these medicinal qualities could be transferred to anything compounded within it.

Asked to describe this particular pestle & mortar in one word the word ‘fabulous’ springs to mind, its qualities not really something transmittable via photography.

Product features

• Circa 1690
• England
• Height 16" X  Diameter 8"