Not currently on display at the V&A

Coffee Pot

1983 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The body is hexagonal in cross section, resting on a flat base with sides of flat oblong panels. The spout placed just below the top edge of the front panel is a flat four-sided irregular pyramid, cut at an angle towards its apex giving an oblong aperture. The handle, fixed to the body on the opposite side to the spout, is a rod of ebony, square in cross section with flat sides except for the internal face which undulates to accommodate the fingers of the hand. The band is composed of three rows of diamond shaped cells, each row facing in opposite directions to the other and each cell is alternatively filled with black and white enamel. The detachable lid is in the form of an hexagonal pyramid. The interiors of the lid and the body are frosted.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Coffee Pot
  • Cover (Closure)
Materials and techniques
Electroplate and painted enamel with ebony
Brief description
Electroplate and painted enamel coffee pot with ebony handle, designed by Paolo Portoghesi for Alessi, made 1983.
Physical description
The body is hexagonal in cross section, resting on a flat base with sides of flat oblong panels. The spout placed just below the top edge of the front panel is a flat four-sided irregular pyramid, cut at an angle towards its apex giving an oblong aperture. The handle, fixed to the body on the opposite side to the spout, is a rod of ebony, square in cross section with flat sides except for the internal face which undulates to accommodate the fingers of the hand. The band is composed of three rows of diamond shaped cells, each row facing in opposite directions to the other and each cell is alternatively filled with black and white enamel. The detachable lid is in the form of an hexagonal pyramid. The interiors of the lid and the body are frosted.
Dimensions
  • Width: 16.5cm
  • Diameter: 8cm
  • Height: 16.5cm
  • Volume capacity: 45cl
Marks and inscriptions
OFFICINA / ALESSI / ITALY / P.A. / T.E. 28 (-32)
Object history
Part of a tea and coffee service which was a prototype for the series of eleven tea and coffee services commissioned from architects by Officina Alessi, a division of Alessi S.p.A., Milan, and made in a limited edition in silver.
Collection
Accession number
M.56-1988

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Record createdAugust 24, 2007
Record URL
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