Images(5)

Teapot

Dateca. 1800

Possibly by Sowter & Co (Mexborough, Yorkshire, England)

OriginEngland, Staffordshire (possibly) or Yorkshire (probably)

MediumFeldspathic stoneware

DimensionsOH: 5 11/16"; OL: 9" (handle to spout); OD: 4 1/4".

Credit LineGift of Elise H. Wright

Object number2024-183,A&B

DescriptionTeapot: oval paneled body rises to slightly sloped shoulder topped by gallery of roundels with integrated sliding lid; molded spout with 17 hole ball grate opposite angular handle. The body with applied and molded reliefs including a lower frieze of acanthus leaves and central panels on either side enclosing classical figures. The panels, handle, and tip of the spout delineated with blue enamel. The underside with an impressed “36” probably for a pattern or shape number.
Label TextFeldspathic stoneware was a perfect bridge between porcelain and stoneware. The high feldspar content made the ware nearly translucent like porcelain, but its stoneware properties enabled it to be successfully and crisply molded. Fragments of feldspathic stoneware turn up throughout late 18th and early 19th century America including similar examples to this teapot recovered in the Chesapeake.
MarkingsThe underside with an impressed “36” probably for a pattern or shape number.
ProvenanceFormerly in the collection of Mr. and Mrs. H. C. Hofheimer II (the donor’s parents). Inherited by the donor from her parents. In June 2024, gifted to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (Williamsburg, VA).