Tureen thumbnail 1
Tureen thumbnail 2

Tureen

1880 (designed), ca.1880 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Object Type
Soup tureens, used to serve soup at the dinner table, first appeared in the early 18th century. Often sumptuously decorated, they rapidly became the dominant object on the dining table. Christopher Dresser's flat undecorated lid is in stark contrast to the more typical 'swollen' form of a conventional tureen, exemplifying his instinct for strict functionalism. The ladle also breaks with tradition by replacing the graceful curve generally used with a stricter, broken form, which requires only the slightest turn of the hand for serving.

Design & Designing
Dresser realised that the use of thin-gauge metal made the object inherently weak and therefore subject to distortion. His solution was to add reinforcing ridges and an internal lip, which gave the bowl extra rigidity. The articulations used in this design therefore had a functional as well as an aesthetic purpose. Other versions of this design were made with ivory handles.

People
Unlike his contemporaries, whom he saw as indulging in pictorialism and historicism for the sake of their superficial romantic associations, Dresser attempted to investigate the formal properties of the objects he admired. He developed fresh designs following on from his own instinct for natural functional forms, which he believed to be appropriate to contemporary requirements.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Tureen
  • Lid
Materials and techniques
Electroplate, with ebony handles
Brief description
Soup tureen with lid, electroplate, designed by Christopher Dresser, Hukin and Heath, 1880
Physical description
Electroplate soup tureen with three legs, a flat lid with finial, two handles of bar form each attached by two horizontal struts. Hole in lid for ladle.
Dimensions
  • Height: 22cm
  • Diameter: 23cm
Credit line
From the Handley Read Collection
Summary
Object Type
Soup tureens, used to serve soup at the dinner table, first appeared in the early 18th century. Often sumptuously decorated, they rapidly became the dominant object on the dining table. Christopher Dresser's flat undecorated lid is in stark contrast to the more typical 'swollen' form of a conventional tureen, exemplifying his instinct for strict functionalism. The ladle also breaks with tradition by replacing the graceful curve generally used with a stricter, broken form, which requires only the slightest turn of the hand for serving.

Design & Designing
Dresser realised that the use of thin-gauge metal made the object inherently weak and therefore subject to distortion. His solution was to add reinforcing ridges and an internal lip, which gave the bowl extra rigidity. The articulations used in this design therefore had a functional as well as an aesthetic purpose. Other versions of this design were made with ivory handles.

People
Unlike his contemporaries, whom he saw as indulging in pictorialism and historicism for the sake of their superficial romantic associations, Dresser attempted to investigate the formal properties of the objects he admired. He developed fresh designs following on from his own instinct for natural functional forms, which he believed to be appropriate to contemporary requirements.
Associated objects
Collection
Accession number
M.26&A-1972

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJanuary 25, 2000
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest