A rummer is a large drinking glass with a capacious bowl set on a short stem and a sturdy foot, made in great numbers in Britain from the late eighteenth century through the first half of the nineteenth. The name is thought to derive from the German Römer, a different, earlier form of wine glass, rather than from rum, although rummers were used for toddy, punch, grog and other mixed drinks.
Typical English and Irish rummers are made of heavy lead glass, with ovoid, bucket, ogee or round funnel bowls, plain or knopped stems and square lemon-squeezer or circular feet. Many were left plain, but others carry engraved decoration, including initials, ships, inn names, sporting scenes, hops and barley, Masonic emblems and commemorative subjects such as the opening of the Sunderland Bridge. Collectors look for good metal, a pleasing shape, crisp engraving and a polished or rough pontil mark consistent with the date. Chips to the foot rim and later added engraving are points to watch. Rummers are robust enough to use, and a set makes a handsome addition to a dining room or drinks tray.
