Mazers and the drinking culture of late medieval England

ABSTRACT Mazers, drinking vessels often made of maple, were an important part of the material culture of medieval England from at least the first half of the twelfth century. They were significant for the range of meanings they brought to the consumption of drink. In some elite households, they had prestigious associations; elsewhere across society, they made important connections between families, in terms of inheritance and identity, and helped perpetuate memory and constitute memorial practices; as communal drinking vessels, they brought people together in common causes, in families, in gilds and chantries, even acting as a medium for conveying indulgences. They also marked a social distinction between those parts of society commonly drinking wine, who mainly used silver vessels, and those of lesser status, who more usually drank ale. The largest numbers were found in towns, and in monasteries, where the personal use of silver vessels by monks was discouraged.