Among all promotional products we can get our hands on today, drinking mugs are still some of the most popular ones. No, wait. They just might be THE most popular ones.
Think about it — drinking mugs are fantastic for all sorts of things. Coffee, tea, milk, or something stronger to calm the nerves; the choices are endless! Furthermore, we can use them as decor or even for holding pens and little things we keep losing.
But, is that all that we know about mugs? Surely mugs are a lot more interesting than that!
Well, we’re glad you feel the same way, as we just so happen to have a full list of interesting facts about mugs you need to know right now.
25 Interesting facts about mugs that may or may not change your life
- The first mug was actually made from bone. Back in the day (OK, in Neolithic Stone Age), people didn’t really know which materials to use to make mugs. Or, you know, they didn’t have a lot of options. So, the only reasonable thing to do was to use bone for it.
- Although you can use your coffee mug for tea, you should know that a regular coffee mug usually holds about 12 fluid ounces. So basically, you would be drinking two cups of tea at the same time. Hey, we don’t judge!
- Have you ever wondered why we call those unflattering pictures of celebrities “mugshots”? Well, it all comes down to the shape of our heads. The word “mug” used to signify “face” (and it still sometimes does). But what’s even more important is that it also used to mean “a small picture of someone’s head”. If you haven’t noticed, our heads are a bit shaped like vessels. So it’s only reasonable to create drinkware inspired by them.
- Today we mostly use ceramic mugs to drink hot teas and hot chocolate — the hotter, the better. But back in the day, or somewhere around 2,000 BCE, most people used metal mugs. These were made from bronze, gold, lead, and silver.
- Japan and China gave us our first pottery mugs somewhere in 10,000 BCE.
- There are even clay-made mugs. Just ask the Greeks — they made these clay mugs back in 4,000-5,000 BCE. However, their venture wouldn’t be very successful today. Clay mugs proved to be too thick to fit into the mouth. Just imagine drinking something hot from those mugs!
- Any mug can be a coffee mug. But in general, these sorts of mugs are those that are as big as our heads and can even serve for soup. Just kidding — those are just the mugs you can find in modern coffee shops. Usually, modern coffee cups are just big and great for any sort of hot beverage.
- On that note, did you know that coffee mugs are usually insulated? Yeah, we know! Amazing, right? These cool mugs usually have thick walls so that the drink doesn’t get cold too fast.
- Mugs can be made from a variety of materials, but most often, they are made from porcelain, wood, and glass. However, paper and plastic mugs also exist, although we would actually call them cups.
- Of course, the whole point of drinking hot beverages from mugs is so that we don’t burn our fingers. Thus, mugs have handles that allow us to drink safely and without any burns.
- The first travel mugs appeared in the 1980s. Up until then, everybody had to drink their coffee and tea before work, instead of multitasking every day.
- Even in the 1980s, people knew how important it was to keep their drinks from cooling. So, the first travel mugs could keep the beverages hot for up to 24 hours.
- We know that mugs were also made from wood, but we’re not really sure how these mugs looked. They just didn’t last long enough for us to study them.
- Mug cakes and mug brownies are the go-to desserts for busy professionals. All of these can be made in a mug and baked in a microwave. However, since they are a great solution and easy to make, these desserts can make you gain a lot of weight in a seriously short amount of time. Trust us, we know.
- Mugs are also great collectables. In fact, if you decide to buy just one souvenir in a country, try to get a cool coffee mug. They are quite durable and will last you for a very long time, which means you can always look at them fondly and remember your travels.
- Coffee mugs have a bit of a different design than regular cups. Their bottoms are usually concave, and they can even have an extra rim. That way, the mugs are not in contact with cold surfaces, which is why our coffee or tea can stay warm for quite some time.
- Personalised mugs are great as party favours. No one will ever refuse them, and most will always use them.
- Out of all the promotional products in the world, mugs are possibly the most desirable ones. Remember the McDonald’s mugs? They were usually part of an incentive, but that didn’t stop people from getting them.
- Magic heat-changing mugs are not really magic. These interesting mugs are actually painted with heat-sensitive paint. Needless to say, they are one of the most unique coffee mugs out there.
- Heat-changing mugs change colour when in contact with different beverages due to thermochromism.
- Customisable mugs reached a whole new level with chalk mugs. These mugs come with a blackboard coating that you can use to write messages for your loved ones or, you know, to-do lists and grocery lists.
- If you want to get yourself a glass coffee mug, then you should opt for white-coloured glassware. The colour of the glass can affect the way coffee tastes!
- Glass coffee mugs are usually made out of only three materials: sandstone, soda ash, and sand.
- You can buy “the world’s biggest coffee mug” online. Really, Google it. This cool mug is the equivalent of 20 coffee cups in just one mug and it weighs 10 pounds!
- Somewhere in 600 BCE, we got porcelain, and it is still a favourite for most mug makers. There’s nothing quite as effective or useful as porcelain mugs, which is why most people prefer them.
Final thoughts on mugs
And there you have it! Who thought drinking mugs could be interesting? We certainly didn’t. Or did we? Either way, we hope that you enjoyed this brief guide through the history of drinking mugs and that you learned something new about your (and our) favourite type of drinkware.
Take a look at our wide selection of custom branded drinkware and we’re sure you will find the perfect item for your next promotion. If however, you require further information or have any specific questions, don’t hesitate to give a member of our experienced team a call on 0800 0148 970 or simply email us today.
