Station: [5] The Potters’ Guild

Imagine taking a good swig from the puzzle mug (called a Vexierkrug in German). The openwork pattern around the neck would inevitably leave you with a shirt drenched in beer.

But those in the know are aware of the prank. They take a good look at the holes that form part of the patterned band. The opening right next to the handle extends into the mug like a drinking straw … so it’s possible to drink without spilling.

When an apprentice started his training in Bürgel in the Early Modern period, he not only had to pay his apprenticeship dues. To be accepted, he also had to contribute a specific quantity of beer. Who knows, maybe the poor lad was offered a mug like this one by his master, much to the amusement of the other apprentices, journeymen and master potters.

In 1660, Duke Friedrich Wilhelm of Saxony-Altenburg approved the founding of a Potters’ Guild in Bürgel. This association of master craftsmen was designed to promote their shared interests. In 1660, Bürgel had five potters – and they were allowed to operate their workshops inside the town walls! Other towns tended to insist that the workshops -- with their kilns – be set up outside the walls, but in Bürgel, the locals accepted the fire risk and allowed this hazardous trade to operate in the town.

This was the period just after the Thirty Years’ War, when many towns were deserted and desperate for new residents. On the other hand, people were well aware of the protection offered by a town wall and were glad to settle somewhere safe.

A guild also sees itself as a kind of protective community that supports the economic and social interests of its members. With its standards and rules, it protects both its members and the products of their labour. The guild established quality standards and levels of production. It also laid down the length of the training period, and what was to be taught. And last, but not least, the guild supported the widows and orphans of its members.

When the guild was founded, there were five master potters working in Bürgel. A couple of centuries later, that had mushroomed to 36. Within a short time, Bürgel had become a major centre of the potters’ craft in Germany.