Mortar and Pestle. I would say this mortar wins the prize for the most loved bronze surface I have ever encountered outside the realm of the church. It must have been THE most favored grinder in the apothecary … or the kitchen. Cast with a flared lip & foot and decorated with alternating macarons and ridged bars around the waist. I say macarons, but it could just as well be coats of arms or profile portraits within a wreath, all beautifully worn beyond recognition. Both pieces are late 16th century and could be from Spain or Italy. I say bronze because both the mortar and the pestle are magnetic. The bottom is slightly rounded and there is, a very fine, wiggly fault line on the inside – both from being pummeled for four hundred years. It does sit straight and only wiggles slightly. The mortar is 3 ½ inches tall and 5 ¼ inches at its widest. The pestle is 7 ¼ inches tall.