Inscribed “Success to ye city of Boston, Liberty For Ever” and depicting a fantastical townscape, this English ceramic mug (circa 1770s) evokes the early years of the American Revolution. The mug particularly celebrates the American city of Boston as a guardian of Liberty. It may date to the time of the Coercive Acts of 1774. Part of the British Crown’s punishment for the famous Boston Tea Party of 1773, these acts closed the port of Boston and suspended the Massachusetts governing charter. Rather than quelling the growing discontent, the Coercive Acts only stoked the fires of rebellion and garnered sympathy for Massachusetts in the colonies and among political sympathizers in England.

Date Created:

1774-1776

Format:

Artifact

Materials and Measurements:

Earthenware (Creamware); H: 6 3/8" Dia: 4 3/4"

Point of Origin:

Staffordshire, England

Object Identifier #:

2012.00.0003

Alt Text:

This large cream colored mug shows black red and green imagery of small homes in Boston with the words "Success to the City of Boston" written in black below it.

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artifact-moar-successtoboston 1
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Inscribed “Success to ye city of Boston, Liberty For Ever” and depicting a fantastical townscape, this English ceramic mug (circa 1770s) evokes the early years of the American Revolution. The mug particularly celebrates the American city of Boston as a guardian of Liberty. It may date to the time of the Coercive Acts of 1774. Part of the British Crown’s punishment for the famous Boston Tea Party of 1773, these acts closed the port of Boston and suspended the Massachusetts governing charter. Rather than quelling the growing discontent, the Coercive Acts only stoked the fires of rebellion and garnered sympathy for Massachusetts in the colonies and among political sympathizers in England.

Date Created:

1774-1776

Format:

Artifact

Materials and Measurements:

Earthenware (Creamware); H: 6 3/8" Dia: 4 3/4"

Point of Origin:

Staffordshire, England

Object Identifier #:

2012.00.0003

Alt Text:

This large cream colored mug shows black red and green imagery of small homes in Boston with the words "Success to the City of Boston" written in black below it.

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