American Toby Jug Museum 

Father Neptune toby jug in a medium size special colorway produced by Staffordshire Fine Ceramics of Tunstall, England, on behalf of Shorter & Son in a 1993 limited edition to celebrate the publication of "The Shorter Connection" by Irene and Gordon Hopwood. Neptune was originally the Roman god of fresh water, but he then came to be associated with the Greek god, Poseidon. After his father, Saturn, had been deposed, he became a deity of the seas and rivers. This powerful god was said to dwell in a golden underwater palace with his wife, Amphitrite, and when he appeared he was seen in a chariot drawn by sea horses or riding on the back of a dolphin. In his hand he carried the trident, symbol of his might, with which he could stir up or calm the waters of the sea and strike the earth to bring forth fountains and springs. He was also regarded as the creator of horses and the patron of horse races. An annual two-day Roman religious festival, the Neptunalia, took place in his honor on July 23 in the heat of the summer. A seahorse forms the handle of the jug.