Teapot

1875-1925

Measurements

4 in x 8-3/4 in x 5-3/4 in (dia)

Materials

Glazed earthenware

Credit Line

Historic Odessa Foundation

Accession Number

2013.201

Condition Notes

The lid finial is a replacement, and the edges have chips and old repairs.  The tip of the spout is broken.  The molded foot has been ground away, probably to eliminate chips and other damage. 

Provenance

Found in collections but probably part of the David Wilson Mansion, Inc., collections.

Comments

This blue and white tea pot, made en suite with a sugar bowl (accession no. 2013.200), displays a decorative technique called sprigging.  The several white floral motifs placed around the shoulder of the pot were molded separately and applied individually to the blue body after a bisque firing and before a clear glaze was applied.  (Parts of some of the sprigged work have come off the sugar bowl, as often occurs with this technique.)  Although the technique had been used for centuries, features of the design of this teapot and accompanying sugar bowl indicate that they were made in the late 19th or early 20th century.  Features include the relatively squat proportions, the manner of reeding on the body and lid, the lid finial, and the shell-like handles.  The lids of this bowl and the teapot are identical.

The molded foot of the teapot has been ground away, probably to eliminate roughness or irregularities caused by breakage.  Other objects from the David Wilson Mansion, Inc., have also been “repaired” in this manner.