American Toby Jug Museum 

King Arthur character jug modeled by Robert I. Tabbenor and produced by Royal Doulton of Burslem, England, in a 1997 limited edition of 1,500 commissioned by Lawleys By Post. Arthur, the illegitimate son of Uther Pendragon, king of Britain, won acknowledgement as king at the age of fifteen by successfully withdrawing the magical sword, Excalibur, from a stone. Aided in his rise to the throne by his mentor, Merlin, a wizard of renowned skill, Arthur decrees a set of rules for the people and royalty to live by and creates the Knights of the Round Table as a pseudo-enforcement arm for the new regime. The legend of King Arthur dates back to medieval times, embellished through the centuries. The earliest apparent mention of Arthur in any known literature is a brief reference to a mighty warrior in the Welsh poem, Gododdin (circa 600). The last important medieval work dealing with the Arthurian legend is the "Morte d'Arthur of Sir Thomas Malory", which has become the source of later works, including Tennyson's "Idylls of the King" and T.H. White's "The Once and Future King" (1950). A shield and anvil forms the handle of this jug.