Henry Cole, first director of the South Kensington Museum and an early campaigner for the improvement of British Design, designed the tea service, to which this teapot belongs, under the assumed name of Felix Summerly. Cole's aim was 'to obtain as much beauty and ornament as is comensurate with cheapness'. The design was based upon historical precedents combined with a concern for manufacturing techniques and utility. Cole paid particular attention to the application of ornament so that it did not interfere with the simplicity of outline of his design. The handles, in the form of vines, were derived from exmples of Greek earthenware in the British Museum, this form of ornament was simple and cheap to produce and did not in any way inhibit the function of the object. The service was awarded a silver medal by the Society of Arts, admired by the Prince Consort and sold in large numbers. This success encouraged Cole to found Summerly's Art Manufactures in order to commission designs for functional and attractive household objects from well-known artists for commercial production.