Featured Stein: September 2009  
~ A Hunter's Stein ~
by  Ken Stroud
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Celebration of the hunt is a common theme among German steins. This month's featured stein appears to be designed as the perfect gift for an avid hunter.

The scene on the stein, shown unfolded at the right, depicts a successful hunter, rifle in one hand, his quarry at his feet, waving his hat to the Roman goddess Diana (Artemis in Greek mythology), the patroness of hunters, who returns his salutation.  Is the hunter thanking her for her aid in his successful hunt, or are they just two hunters passing in the forest? 

The stein  is marked 0,5L and has a recessed base. The base is unmarked except for “GERMANY” and “1409”. The inscription, split by the handle, is the start of an old German hunting folksong attributed to the poet Wilhelm Müller in 1822.  The inscription and a rough translation:

              Es lebe, was auf Erden          Long live, what on earth
              Stolziert in grüner Pracht:       Struts in green splendor: 
             Die Wälder und die Felder,     The forests and fields,
             Die Jäger und die Jagd!          The hunters and the hunt!

 
To me the most interesting feature  of this stein is its elaborate relief work. A range of  mountains in relief encircles the stein at the top, and the bottom relief shows a rabbit, a boar, and a fox against a background of forest trees. The head and antlers of a large stag protrudes from the stein overlooking the scene of the hunter and Diana.  The colors are quite natural and pleasing and the etched scene is very detailed. The lid appears to be a stump or knot in a tree and shows a hunter in the middle smoking his pipe. All in all, this is a beautiful stein with great appeal to hunter and stein collector alike.
 
    
    
    

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