Entry · Saturday, September 26, 2026
Plate CXXI. A pink polka-dot piggy bank nosing a small pile of coins.
Photo by Andre Taissin on Unsplash
Piggy Bank
/PIG-ee bank/ n.- 1. A hollow ceramic or plastic savings vessel cast in the form of a pig, distinguished by a slot at the dorsal ridge for coin deposit and, in the classic rotund specimens, a midsection that curves outward with a confidence the contents rarely justify.
- 2. colloq. Ceramic livestock that has let itself go in all the right ways. The belly is load-bearing. The haunches are the whole point. She sits on four stubby legs and does not apologize for what she carries.
"Grandma kept a thiccc piggy bank on the Frigidaire, pink as a flamingo and wide as a softball, nosing a small pile of quarters like it was doing them a favor. The coins were decorative. The silhouette was the statement."
From pygg, a Middle English term for a type of orange earthenware clay used to make household jars and pots, not the animal; the pig shape arrived later, probably once potters forgot what pygg meant and leaned into the pun. The snout was an afterthought. The rump was not.
Filed by
The midsection is structurally dominant and the etymology confirms the rump was not an accident.
Ruling ADMITTED UNDER PROTEST
The rump is not dominant. It is convex. The midsection is the primary mass. Both are documentable. Admitted.
In the margin
The slot is on top so you have to approach it from above, respectfully, with an offering. The pig accepts. The pig does not thank you.