This brown-glazed English earthenware harvest jug shows a rare historic repair. The spout of the jug has been replaced with three pieces of ceramic taken from another vessel and held in place by prominent lead rivets. Riveting has been a method of ceramic repair since antiquity and involves drilling small holes into the ceramic body through which a metal binding can be fastened. There are two main methods of riveting. One involves drilling only partially through the ceramic and securing it with a staple-type fastening which does not pass all the way through and is only visible from one side. The other method, known as lacing, involves drilling all the way through the ceramic, tying the metal fixture through the holes and securing at the other side. This jug has been repaired using the lacing method.

Riveting was in widespread use in China in the seventeenth century, where western travellers observed its use. Although Roman examples of riveting have been found in Britain, the practice appears to have declined, or subsequent repairs have used ferrous metals that have eroded over time, reducing the evidence of continuing practice. Riveting was certainly revived in England in the eighteenth century and gained popularity in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The bulky style of rivet on this jug suggests that it is an early repair possibly dating to around the time of the jug's production. There are faint traces of a sealing agent on the inside lip of the spout suggesting that it was repaired for use and again indicating an early date for the repair. Pre-nineteenth century riveted pieces survive in far fewer numbers than later examples.

This jug is also a striking example of applied and stamped decroation. two large tulips adorn the handle side of the jug, as these vessels were often stored with their handle facing outwards for ease of use. The jug was possibly made in Wiltshire where examples of this kind of decoration have been found.