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Open Content Program

The Birmingham Museum of art makes available digital images of works in the Museum’s collection believed to be in the public domain. Images are available free of charge for any use, commercial or non-commercial. Users do not need to contact the Museum for authorization to use these images. They are available through the Online Collection at artsbma.org/collection. See detailed instructions for specific work types below.

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The mission of the Birmingham Museum of Art is to spark the creativity, imagination, and liveliness of Birmingham by connecting all its citizens to the experience, meaning, and joy of art. The Museum understands that by sharing images of works online without restrictions, the BMA collection becomes more accessible to a larger audience.

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Open Content Program
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The Birmingham Museum of Art
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Figural Jug

John Lehman

About 1870

This rare 19th-century Alabama figural jug was purchased from a private individual who who discovered it in a Talladega County store in the early 1970s. Joey Brackner, Director of the Alabama Center for Traditional Culture and author of Alabama Folk Pottery (2006), commented on the significance of the piece:


The acquisition the John Lehman figural jug, one of only three in existence, is a testament to the commitment of the Birmingham Museum of Art to acquiring and presenting the art of the people of Alabama. Along with enslaved Edgefield potter Dave Drake, Lehman is the most well known of historical Southern potters. Lehman combined a variety of decorative techniques unusual for the Deep South with the distinctive alkaline glaze for which the region is known. He most likely came to the United States in the 1840s as a refugee of the revolutions in the German states. During his odyssey, he acquired considerable skills as a potter. Lehman’s longest tenure was in Rock Mills, Alabama, where he and his family lived and worked during the Civil War and Reconstruction. Before his death in 1883, Lehman created a series of decorated jars and jugs that have been the source of much excitement and varying interpretation.


With this most recent acquisition, the BMA now owns two of these important decorated pieces, and has secured a third as a promised gift. The collection also includes two undecorated pieces attributed to Lehman.

See More of the Collection

Futura vase, "Hexagon Twist", shape 425-8"
Carnelian II vase, shape 310-7"
Set includes goose-beak pitcher, flask, and a footed bowl
Flag quilt with stripes of red, white, and blue.