Pick of the week
The precise function of the series of English tin-glazed earthenware seated cat jugs common to the 1650s-70s is unknown but, as many are dated and initialled, they may have been given as marriage or betrothal gifts.
Surviving dated examples range from 1657 to 1677 – an example from 1677 was sold by Bonhams in 2014 for £22,500. This undated 6in (16cm) cat-form jug was among the strongest performers of the Anne and Frederick Vogel III collection offered at Sotheby’s New York in a sale on January 19.