Pair of lidded tea caddies

1840-1900

Measurements

3-3/4 in x 5-1/2 in x 4 in

Materials

Pewter

Credit Line

Historic Odessa Foundation, The David Wilson Mansion, Inc.

Accession Number

1971.906

Condition Notes

The sides and bottoms have been pushed inward, and some edges are dented and misshapen. 

Provenance

Ex coll. Mrs. E. Tatnall (Mary Corbit) Warner

Comments

The tea caddies are made of thin sheets of pewter bent to form and soldered in place.  Each rectangular caddy has wide chamfered corners, making the overall into half an octagon.  The sides taper towards the base.  The tops have a narrow neck that holds a lid inside.  It can be removed by an ivory button finial.  A pewter cover slides over the neck.  The top of each caddy is engraved with several bands (rows of dots, Greek-key scroll, and scrolls) with stylized floral sprays filling the interior of the panels.  The covers are also engraved.  One cover (.2) features an elderly Chinese man with mountains in the distance. The other (.1) has a stylized flower.

These tea caddies were among many Chinese-made non-porcelain objects traded with the West throughout the 19th century,