Teapot

Object Type
Most English earthenware teapots of the first half of the 18th century were very small. This reflected the high cost of tea rather than its popularity, since by mid-century it was being drunk throughout the land by socially ambitious people of limited means.

Design & Designing
When slip-casting and press-moulding was introduced into Staffordshire around 1740, the new trade of 'block-maker' came into being in order to make the master-blocks from which all subsequent disposable plaster moulds could be made. The sources of their early designs were many and various, and also often mildly eccentric. The heart shape of this example perhaps reflects its exclusive use by ladies, while the crude enamel decoration was a cheap but effective way to imitate the bright colours of the new English porcelains.

Retailers & Trading
Mass-produced ceramic objects like this teapot sold not only by 'Staffordshire Warehouses' but at the many Fairs which were held at certain times of the year. An average price for a Staffordshire teapot in the 1740s was about one shilling).