Starbucks New York mug: Discovery Series

By The Starbucks Cups team · Last checked 2026-11-15 · How we make these pages

Starbucks Discovery Series New York mug with blue roses, a cake slice, a fish and a chair around the words NEW YORK — Front view · numbered markers match the list below Show markers

The New York Discovery Series mug shows the Statue of Liberty, an Eastern bluebird and an Adirondack chair, plus a large building, a waterfall, a jockey cap, a baseball and a boat that may be New York State places.

Series: Discovery Series
Place: New York, USA
Type: Mug
Released: Not confirmed
Capacity: 14 fl ozstandard mug size
SKU: Not confirmed

Shop on Amazon See eBay listings

Sponsored links: we earn a commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Browse all Discovery Series mugs on eBay →

The chair Thomas Lee tested on his family

Sometime between 1900 and 1903, Thomas Lee set out to build an outdoor chair for his family's home in Westport, New York, one sturdy and comfortable on rugged ground ^[9]^[3]. For several years he had family members test each version ^[9]. A friend, Harry Bunnell, owned a carpentry shop in town ^[10]. Bunnell saw the commercial value, and Lee gave him the design ^[9]. The patent, No. 794,777, is dated July 18, 1905, and names Bunnell as the inventor ^[11]. Some people believe he filed it without Lee's knowledge, though Adirondack.net says solid evidence is thin ^[10]. The patent describes "a chair of the bungalow type" for porches, lawns and camps ^[11]. Only as the design spread beyond the mountains did people start calling it the Adirondack chair ^[10]. The painted chair at the lower right of the New York mug (5) has a glass resting on one arm.

The mug does not label its drawings, so connecting this one to the story is our reading.

What's on the mug

1
NEW YORK lettering
NEW YORK in yellow-orange capitals sits over a dark green circle. The STARBUCKS wordmark also runs down the Back view beside the handle.
2
Blue roses
Large pale blue roses on green stems, with swirled petals, rise above the lettering. Real roses are not blue, and the mug doesn't say what they stand for.
3
Cake slice with blue topping (may be cheesecake)
A wedge of cake with an orange crust and a pale body is topped with dripping round blue blobs on a green plate at the bottom of the circle. It looks like cheesecake with blueberries and may nod to New York-style cheesecake, but the drawing is too plain to be sure. The mug doesn't say what it is.
4
Spotted fish that may be a brook trout
A pale blue fish with dark blue-green spots and a yellow-green belly leaps at the right of the lettering, with blue drops and orange splashes below it. It may be a brook trout, the state's freshwater fish, which lives in Adirondack and Catskill waters. The state describes brook trout with red spots in blue halos, while this fish has plain dark spots, so this is a guess. The mug doesn't name it.^[1]
5
Adirondack chair
A chair with a tall slatted back and wide flat arms, painted blue, orange and green, stands at the lower right. A glass with an orange slice on the rim rests on one arm. The slatted-back shape is the Adirondack chair, which was invented in Westport, New York. The mug doesn't name it.^[3]
6
Angler's fishing rod
A thin green rod with a curved line arcs from the upper left over the green circle. It is held by the fishing man standing on the roof of the large building (elements 7 and 11), so it is one drawing with him.
7
Large building that may be the New York State Capitol
A wide cream, yellow-green and blue building with many rows of arched windows, steep blue roofs, dormers and a pointed turret stands at the far left of this photo and across the lower middle to the right of the Side photo, under the angler. It may be the New York State Capitol in Albany, which has a stone ground floor in the Romanesque style and no dome. The drawing is simplified and several large Victorian buildings look similar, so this is not certain. The mug doesn't name it.^[4]
8
Milk carton pouring into a glass Side view
A green carton with a white flower on its side tips and pours milk into a tall glass at the upper left of the Side photo. Milk is New York's official state beverage, so the carton may stand for that. The mug doesn't say so.^[1]
9
Waterfall that may be Niagara Falls Side view
A wide waterfall with white-blue streaks spills over a rock ledge with green banks and a dark green wedge of pine trees, with white spray at its right and a small boat at its left (element 18). It may be Niagara Falls, where Goat Island splits the Horseshoe Falls from the American and Bridal Veil Falls, but the drawing shows one curtain of water and could be any large falls. The mug doesn't name it.^[7]
10
Orange horseshoe Side view
An orange horseshoe with dark nail holes hangs in the middle of the Side photo, under the jockey cap (element 17). Next to a jockey cap it may point to horse racing.^[5]
11
Angler standing on the roof Side view
A man in a green hat, sunglasses and a green fishing vest with pockets stands with one boot raised on the roof of the large building (element 7), holding the fishing rod (element 6) over the green circle. The mug doesn't say who he is or what place he stands for.
12
Eastern bluebird Back view
A bird with a bright blue head, back and wings and an orange breast perches on the narrow end of an orange baseball bat (element 19) at the left of the Back photo. The colours match the Eastern bluebird, New York's state bird. The mug doesn't name it.^[1]
13
Statue of Liberty Back view
A green figure with a crown, a raised right hand holding a torch with an orange flame and a tablet in her left arm rises in the middle of the Back photo. It is the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor. The mug doesn't name it.^[2]
14
Bagel sandwich Back view
A sesame-and-poppy-dotted orange bagel is stuffed with green leaves and a white spread, with a few crumbs falling below it. It sits in front of the low green building (element 20). The mug doesn't say what is in it.
15
Blue spotted cow Back view
A pale blue cow with large dark blue spots bends its head to graze at the right of the Back photo, standing on the green bank above the boat. Small blue flowers sit by its mouth. The mug doesn't say what it stands for.
16
Blue tree with orange trunk
A tree with a round dark blue crown dotted with small lighter marks and an orange trunk stands at the foot of the large building. A second one stands at its right end, in front of the green circle. The mug doesn't say what kind of tree it is.
17
Jockey cap and goggles Side view
A light blue riding cap with a green top and a lime S on it has a pair of blue goggles lying across it, above the orange horseshoe (element 10). Together with the horseshoe it may point to horse racing, and the S may be for Saratoga, whose race course is a famous Thoroughbred track in New York. The cap isn't marked with a name, so this is a guess.^[5]
18
Boat that may be an Erie Canal boat Back view
A blue boat with a green hull, a cabin with square windows, an orange roof, a lifebuoy ring and orange-tipped posts along its side moves through a pale blue wave at the right of the Back photo. It may be a canal boat or a tug; the Erie Canal runs between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. The mug doesn't name it.^[8]
19
Baseball in ripples Back view
A pale blue baseball with dark blue stitching sits in a ring of ripples between the bat and the Statue of Liberty. With the bat and the low building it may refer to baseball in Cooperstown, New York, but the mug doesn't say so.^[6]
20
Low building that may be the Baseball Hall of Fame Back view
A long, low green building with two gabled end pavilions and a row of arched windows lies under the orange bat at the left of the Back photo. It may stand for the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, as it sits with the baseball and bat, but it is drawn too simply to be sure. The mug doesn't name it.^[6]
21
Orange wing-shaped pieces in a tub (may be chicken wings) Side view
Several orange, wing-shaped pieces with browned patches and a little steam rise from a small grey-blue tub at the left of the Side photo, above the boat, next to a small dip cup. They look like chicken wings and may nod to Buffalo wings, but the drawing is too plain to be sure. The mug doesn't say what they are.
22
Small blue insect
A small blue insect with spread wings hovers below the roses at the right of the lettering. The mug doesn't say what it is.
23
Blue zigzag square Back view
A small square filled with a blue-and-white zigzag pattern sits at the bow of the boat, next to the bagel. The mug doesn't say what it is.

The photos show the Front, Side and Back, which cover most of the wrap; the area directly behind the handle and the underside are not shown.

Collector notes

The inside of the mug is bright blue, which shows in the Back photo.
This mug is easy to confuse with the New York City mug, which has a taxi, a pigeon and a pizza slice; this one shows roses, a fish and a chair instead.

Before you buy

The inside of this mug is bright blue, which shows in the Back photo. It is easy to confuse with the New York City mug, which has a taxi, a pigeon and a pizza slice; this one shows roses, a fish and a chair instead.