Teapot
Unknown Artist
ca. 1800
Medium
Stoneware
Dimensions
6 1/2 × 11 1/4 in. (16.5 × 28.6 cm)
Classification
Ceramics-Pottery
Culture
British
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mrs. Hallingsworth Siter, 1929
Accession Number
29.77.2a, b
Tags
Art Historical Context
This elegant stoneware teapot, crafted in Britain around 1800, captures the height of the nation's tea-drinking obsession during the late Georgian era. As tea imports from China surged and became a daily ritual across social classes, households filled with specialized ceramics like this one. Measuring a practical 6½ × 11¼ inches, its form balances functionality with subtle ornamentation, likely featuring delicate floral motifs that evoke the period's love for nature-inspired designs in everyday objects. Stoneware, prized for its durability and fine texture achieved through high-temperature fi...