This dainty hand-painted jar is from the mid-20th century France. It is decorated in glazed faïence and inscribed OPIUM
Opium occupied a significant place in historic European medicine long before its modern association with narcotics. Preparations derived from opium poppies appeared in early pharmacy inventories and were incorporated into numerous pain-relieving and sedative compounds.
Ceramic jars like this descend from the traditional vessels once used to organize the shelves of European apothecaries. Pharmacists kept an enormous range of raw ingredients and prepared compounds in labeled containers. The vessels were practical, but also part of the presentation of the pharmacy itself.
