Novelty opium apothecary jar owned by Hazel Scott: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A novelty apothecary jar with “opium” label owned by Hazel Scott. The jar (a) and its accompanying lid (b) are painted porcelain.

The porcelain apothecary jar has a cylindrical body with an embossed ring at the shoulder and a footed base that have been accented with painted gold leaf bands. Painted just below the shoulder is a large blue banner with painted black text that reads [OPiUM]. Painted directly below the banner is a floral wreath design with a large pink and yellow rose at the center that is bookended by sprigs of three, small, five petal, orange and yellow flowers on one side, and three, blue, cup-shaped flowers with yellow stems on the other, accented with green leaves of varying sizes and shapes. The rest of the apothecary jar’s exterior is plain cream in color and the interior is plain. Handwritten brown text on the bottom of the apothecary jar reads [P. Page's / Apothicaire / à Rodez].

The accompanying porcelain drop in lid for the apothecary jar has a short, round wall on the bottom that nestles tightly into the mouth of the jar, creating a seal. The top of the lid has a conical shape with a ball shaped knob handle at the top. The knob has been painted gold leaf at the top and the lid has a floral design matching the one on the jar.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: mid 20th century
• Manufactured by: Unidentified
• Owned by: Hazel Scott, American, 1920 - 1981
• Subject of: P. Page's Apothicaire à Rodez, French
• Type: apothecary bottles
• Medium: paint and gold on porcelain
• Dimensions: H x W x D (2023.101.3.1ab): 6 × 3 3/8 × 3 3/8 in. (15.3 × 8.5 × 8.5 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W x D (2023.101.3.1a): 3 7/8 × 3 1/16 × 3 1/16 in. (9.8 × 7.8 × 7.8 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W x D (2023.101.3.1b): 2 5/16 × 3 3/8 × 3 3/8 in. (5.9 × 8.5 × 8.5 cm)
• Place made: France, Europe
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Entertainers
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Musicians
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Object number: 2023.101.3.1ab
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Adam Clayton Powell III
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Unknown – Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.