Collectible Beer Mugs, Antique Beer Mugs and Customer Beer Mugs

As folks sit at local pub or at home with a nice frosty glass of hops, most of them have no idea the amount of history that can be found in beer mugs. Beer never tastes better than when it is served in either a thick glass mug, a clay tankard, or an exquisitely designed German stein made of metal.

It was during the 14th century that the modern beer mug came into existence. During this period, most of the world was in the grip of the bubonic plague. Death and disease were a common occurrence and during the summer large swarms of insects would invade Europe and add to the misery. People began to constantly keep their beverages and food covered and various types of lids began to pop up on drink containers. This led to the invention of the thumb leverrd lid so that people could use their thumb to open their stein to take a drink.
During the 16th century, lidded beer mugs and other covered beverage containers became the law of Germany. Guild systems were firmly in place throughout Europe and because of these laws and the heightened awareness of personal hygiene the pewter guild became a powerful organization that would hold sway over beer steins for several hundreds of years.
But making beer mugs out of strictly pewter was a health hazard in its own way. Pewter contained a high level of lead which for those who drank often it would lead to heavy metal poisoning and gout. Eventually, clay tankards with pewter lids became the standard for beer steins across Europe into the late 19th century. Also during this time, tankards in the United Kingdom began showing up with glass bottoms. This was believed to come about to avoid conscription as drinks were passed around with the King’s shilling inside and those that drank them unaware were “taken” into the armed forces.

By the 20th century, beer mugs had moved away from clay and pewter and moved into the realm of glass. Because of the lead poisoning associated with pewter steins, these beer mugs were outlawed in England. The more widely known ten sided fluted glass began to show up in catalogs and pubs as early as 1930 and is the one of the most common beer mugs today.
People still drink out of pewter steins these days, but these containers are now lead free and perfectly safe to have a drink in.

Making beer and having something to drink it out of have gone together since the dawn of modern civilization. The desire to make the best beer and serve it in the best container has only been an issue for a few centuries. Since man made the first beer stein in the 14th century, enthusiasts all over the world have sought out these items. Now, with the inception of the internet, finding these collectible beer mugs is now easier than ever.

It is believed that beer began 8000 years ago with the Sumerian empire. They are believed to have been the firsts to develop the skill of fermenting grain in water, but other cultures seemed to develop this skill at the same time without any evidence of having learned it from the Sumerians. Beer did not become commercial until the medieval period of history as monks would brew different types of beer at their abbeys and sell them as they travelled around the countryside. Today, beer is a hallmark drink of varied depth and taste, celebrated for its uniqueness in each country that has breweries and each country has their own unique way to make and drink beer.

Even though beer has been around forever, beer mugs did not begin their origins until the 14th century. During the time of the bubonic plague, large swarms of flies would invade central Europe during the summertime. It became a necessity to keep your drink covered and the thumb levered lid on a pewter stein became the standard way to drink beer for over three hundred years.

Breweriana is the term for those who have an avid interest in collecting beer steins. In Germany, beer steins were passed down from generation to generation and they became almost like a crest of a family’s history. This tradition has faded in modern times, but some of those early generational beer mugs can fetch several thousands of dollars to collectors.
If you want to collect beer mugs, you have to first realize there are many varied kinds of mugs with their own set of histories. Whether it is pewter, silver, wood, ceramic, porcelain, or glass, they all vary depending on the region of the world they were used in.

For example, pewter steins were once outlawed in England due to the high levels of lead in them. This led to the development of the fluted and dimpled style of glass beer mugs that are used today.

If these wonderful pieces of beer drinking history interest you, E-bay usually has over 7000 types of beer containers for auction every day. The best source to find these collectibles is to visit your local pubs or beer drinking events and get to know those around you who consider beer drinking more than just a pastime but an art.