Nutmeg Grater thumbnail 1
Not on display

Nutmeg Grater

1783-1784 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

A nutmeg grater is an implement for grating nutmeg (to be applied on punch, toddy or other hot beverages, or on meat or other food), used principally during the period 1780-1840. There were two types: (1) portable, made in a variety of shapes such as a cylindrical tube, a circular, oval or rectangular box, a teardrop, heart, egg, urn or rum keg and: (2) table type, half cylindrical or canoe shaped. Inside there was a space for the whole nutmeg, an iron or steel grater and sometimes space for storing grated nutmeg. Many examples bear a monogram but few a crest.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Silver, engraved
Brief description
Nutmeg grater, silver, made by E. Robinson and T. Phipps, London, 1783-4
Physical description
Nutmeg grater, silver, the slightly domed opening laterally, the bottom hinged at the end; bright cut decoration, fixed grater
Dimensions
  • Length: 2in
  • Width: 1.25in
Marks and inscriptions
  • London hallmarks for 1783-4
  • Mark of Phipps and Robinson
  • Engraved with a monogram MMB (unidentified).
Credit line
Gift of Guy and Rupert Oswald Smith
Object history
Bequest - Guy and Rupert Oswald Smith
Acquisition RF: 27 / 8516
Summary
A nutmeg grater is an implement for grating nutmeg (to be applied on punch, toddy or other hot beverages, or on meat or other food), used principally during the period 1780-1840. There were two types: (1) portable, made in a variety of shapes such as a cylindrical tube, a circular, oval or rectangular box, a teardrop, heart, egg, urn or rum keg and: (2) table type, half cylindrical or canoe shaped. Inside there was a space for the whole nutmeg, an iron or steel grater and sometimes space for storing grated nutmeg. Many examples bear a monogram but few a crest.
Collection
Accession number
M.990-1927

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Record createdSeptember 10, 2004
Record URL
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