Unusual Artifacts: A Deceptive Glass, 1820-1830

Deceptive Glass or "Lick"
Britain, 1820-1830
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Long before people expected outrageously large servings, consumers were content with, in some cases, just a satisfying taste of a favorite treat. Take, for example, ice cream. In the early Nineteenth Century, ice cream and ices—especially those served at the seaside as a cooling treat—were not offered up in giant scoops, but were sold as a “lick.”

With the advent of new “ice cream making machines,” these frozen novelties were quite en vogue. But, people didn’t really want a whole bowlful. Instead, they wanted just enough to cool them off and give them a nice taste in their mouths. And, so, glasses such as this one—called “licks” or “deceptive glasses”—were commonly used by vendors at the beach and at fairgrounds.

While the glass looks as if it’s a normal drinking vessel, it’s not. It is, in fact, almost entirely solid glass. There’s only a modest indentation in the bowl which allows for a smear of ice cream to be applied by the vendor. This smear would be licked off and the glass returned to the vendor who would, in most cases not washing it first, apply another smear and sell it to the next customer.

The lick is constructed of solid leaded glass and makes for a rather attractive, sparklingly clear artifact. The vessel was made by hand and probably took two people at once to construct. 

Treat of the Week: Lemon Icebox Cookies with Lemon Chiffon Ice Cream and Cherry Sauce

A wonderful dinner of my mother’s homemade red sauce and meatballs made our Sunday together a very special occasion. Accompanying the dinner was a luscious, cool tomato and mozzarella salad with a fresh lemon-herb dressing which absorbed nicely into the wonderful rosemary bread that my mother served with it. The lemon in the dressing set the stage for the real showstopper which was to follow. 

This week’s treat of the week is a double feature. First, we have homemade lemon icebox cookies. The dough includes lemon juice and lemon zest. It is then chilled in a log, rolled in turbinado sugar, cut and baked. The finished cookies have a glorious, mellow lemon taste. A drizzle of lemon-infused sugar glaze adds extra beauty for the taste buds as well as the ice.

Along with these lovely cookies, we were treated by another of my mother’s brilliant ice cream creations made in her Cuisinart Ice Cream Machine. This lemon chiffon ice cream is flavored with just a little lemon extract and has a refreshing, light lemon taste. My mother created a special sauce to go with it. The sauce included pitted fresh cherries, brandy and cassis and is a truly excellent accompaniment to the smooth lemon ice cream. 

I confess, I ate quite a lot of this yesterday, and I don’t regret one bite. As the temperatures soar, there’s little that’s more simultaneously soothing and invigorating than the flavor of lemon.