'The Cube'
Teapot and Cover
1926 (made)
1926 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This teapot, marketed as 'THE CUBE', was designed as non-drip, non-chip and easily stacked. It was widely used on transatlantic ocean liners, railways and in hotels and restaurants and was the world's largest selling patented teapot.
Robert Crawford Johnson patented The Cube teapot in 1917 and it was still in use on the QE2 in the 1980s. Ths teapot is not only an iconic design, with its distinctive art deco profile, but also bears testimony to the British obsession with tea drinking and the desire of many British ceramic designers to create the perfect pourable and storeable teapot.
Robert Crawford Johnson patented The Cube teapot in 1917 and it was still in use on the QE2 in the 1980s. Ths teapot is not only an iconic design, with its distinctive art deco profile, but also bears testimony to the British obsession with tea drinking and the desire of many British ceramic designers to create the perfect pourable and storeable teapot.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
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| Title | 'The Cube' (manufacturer's title) |
| Materials and techniques | earthenware, press-moulded; transfer printed in underglaze green, painted with green enamel and gilded |
| Brief description | Teapot and cover, 'THE CUBE', 1926 |
| Physical description | Earthenware with a white glaze. the teapot is square with the spout and handle set at opposite corners. The spout is set on a corner which is flattened in under the spout, the spout being set in under the rim. The handle is formed by the corner edge retained as a column and the teapot body curved in to leave room for the fingers between the handle and the body. the lid fits flush with the flat top of the teapot, the knob grip raised in the centre of a circular depression. The teapot is decorated with green painted stripes edged with gilt around the lid depression and the teapot body, also gilt lines around the spout, the foot and the lid knob and teapot handle. there are also moulded vertical grooves on either side of each corner. Transfer printed in green on one side are the Royal Coat-of-arms surrounded by the words 'Lipton Tea Merchant' and 'By appointment' within a ribbon. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Mass produced |
| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Object history | Purchased from 'Fancy Goods' Stall 102, Chelsea Antique Market, Kings Road, SW3. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | This teapot, marketed as 'THE CUBE', was designed as non-drip, non-chip and easily stacked. It was widely used on transatlantic ocean liners, railways and in hotels and restaurants and was the world's largest selling patented teapot. Robert Crawford Johnson patented The Cube teapot in 1917 and it was still in use on the QE2 in the 1980s. Ths teapot is not only an iconic design, with its distinctive art deco profile, but also bears testimony to the British obsession with tea drinking and the desire of many British ceramic designers to create the perfect pourable and storeable teapot. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | CIRC.34A-1976 |
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| Record created | February 6, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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