American Toby Jug Museum 

Viking Lady character jug produced by Pennine Pottery of Alston, England, circa 1990. The Vikings were Scandinavian pirates and traders, renowned for their savage assaults with intent to pillage and plunder. Seafarers and explorers, they ravaged Northern Europe between the eighth and eleventh centuries, inspiring terror wherever they went. The Vikings occupied much of eastern England and eventually Knut, King of Denmark, took the English throne in 1016. They went on to establish settlements in Ireland, Normandy, Finland, Poland, and Russia. The Viking Lady primarily stayed home to oversee the home, farm and children, only sometimes venturing out on an exploration. Their skillfully-constructed long boats, with the mystical dragon figureheads, were solid proof of their advanced comprehension of engineering and boat design. The carved dragon prow of a Viking longboat forms the handle of this jug.