Teapot and lid

Teapot, milk jug, tea bowl
Porcelain (hard-paste), enamel, gilt
1760-1780

Teapot, milk jug, sugar bowl, tea bowl, teacup
Porcelain (hard-paste), enamel, gilt
1760-1780

Status

Not on view

Label Text

Floral motifs executed in vibrant overglaze enamel pinks, oranges, and purples of the "famille rose" palette adorn a set of teawares believed to have been owned by Tobias Lear, George Washington's personal secretary and husband of Martha Washington's niece, Frances "Fanny" Dandridge. The decoration exemplifies the rococo style of romantic, florid decoration popular in Europe in the second half of the eighteenth century.

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Date1760-1780

Geography Made - China

Medium/TechniquePorcelain (hard-paste), enamel, gilt

DimensionsOverall (H x W x D): 5 1/2 in. x 7 5/8 in. x 4 5/8 in. (13.97 cm x 19.37 cm x 11.75 cm)

Credit LineGift of Louise Eyre, 1932

Object numberH-33/A

DescriptionTeapot with a globular body, straight spout, and ear-shaped handle, on a shallow foot ring. Low-domed, circular lid with a pointed bud knop. The teapot and lid are decorated in overglaze polychrome enamels in the famille rose palette and gilt. Each side of the teapot features a bouquet of roses, chrysanthemums, and other flowers, tied with a ribbon at bottom; the remnants of a gilded scroll border that once encircled each bouquet is present on one side. A purple chrysanthemum and a pink rose frame either side of the handle and the spout where they each join the body. The mouth and the top of the lid are encircled with a thin red line with pendant half-flower heads and buds in red and gilt and swags of pink and purple flowers and green foliage. The edge of the lid retains traces of gilt, and the top of the spout retains some gilt scrollwork.
Published References

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