{"id":258,"date":"2022-01-13T13:00:49","date_gmt":"2022-01-13T12:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homesandantiques.com\/?p=25252"},"modified":"2022-01-13T13:14:11","modified_gmt":"2022-01-13T12:14:11","slug":"collecting-antique-tea-caddies","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/collecting-antique-tea-caddies\/","title":{"rendered":"Collecting antique tea caddies"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Molly Malsom\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 13 January 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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While the history of tea drinking stretches far back to China\u2019s Tang dynasty (618\u2013906 AD), British high society properly took up this pastime with gusto in the 17th century. This is partly thanks to King Charles II\u2019s Portuguese wife, Catherine of Braganza, who was already an avid tea drinker when she came to Britain in 1662 and helped to make the drink fashionable.<\/p>\n

By the mid 18th century, with imports from the East India Company, the widespread prominence of tea meant that its price rocketed. As a result, tea became heavily taxed, which led to a growing black market for the precious leaves, and a subsequent demand for smart storage solutions. \u2018Because tea was so expensive, to keep it safe, people would store it in a tea chest or tea box, which eventually became known as a tea caddy,\u2019 explains dealer Mark Goodger.<\/p>\n

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Asprey caddy, 1880, signed by Charles Asprey, with a Wedgwood Jasperware plaque, \u00a31,795, Mark Goodger Antiques<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The word caddy is derived from the Malay \u2018kati\u2019, a unit of weight by which tea was sold. \u2018As tea was too expensive to risk leaving it in the presence of servants, the caddy in which it was stored would generally be kept in the drawing room,\u2019 Mark adds. \u2018Subsequently, the tea caddy became an important and fashionable accessory.\u2019<\/p>\n

The earliest examples of caddies closely resembled ginger jars, made from porcelain, and were often blue and white, however very few can be found today. Later, caddies were made from precious materials such as silver, shagreen or tortoiseshell, reflecting the revered, other-worldly aromas of the tea leaves they contained.<\/p>\n

Antique silver expert Ann Wax of Wax Antiques chronicles the changing style of the caddy: \u2018Some of the earliest silver examples date from the late 1600s and early 1700s. They had sliding bases (or tops) and the cap was used for measuring the tea. By the mid 18th century, matching sets were available, with two caddies (for green and black tea) and a sugar bowl or mixing bowl, all fitted into a wooden or shagreen case, often with silver mounts.\u2019<\/p>\n

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Antique tartanware caddy with mother of pearl escutcheon, c1830, \u00a32,995, Mark Goodger Antiques<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Key designers of caddies can be categorised by the materials they used. \u2018The leading silversmiths of the time included Paul de Lamerie and Paul Storr, and Hester Bateman, the collectable lady silversmith working in the late 18th century in London.\u2019 Silver caddies are usually valued between \u00a3500 to \u00a35,000, with boxed sets being of higher value.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, celebrated Georgian cabinetmakers Thomas Chippendale and George Hepplewhite were two of the best-known tea caddy designers using wood. While in some ways similar in style, their caddy aesthetics do differ. The Chippendale method is characterised by a minimalist rectangular or square shape, mainly in mahogany, with a handle, usually resembling a miniature chest and featuring a carved, raised lid. In contrast, Hepplewhite\u2019s technique is more decorative, using the neoclassical Adam style, and can be oblong, oval or square, usually with a concave or flat lid.<\/p>\n

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A rare German caddy shaped like a melon dating to c1800, \u00a37,750 at Mark Goodger Antiques.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

According to Mark, another Georgian heavyweight Henry Clay \u2018made tea caddies out of papier-m\u00e2ch\u00e9, which is highly collectable. During the Regency and Victorian periods, more pieces were clearly marked with big names such as Lund, Asprey and Betjemann.\u2019<\/p>\n

During the Georgian and Regency periods, craftsmanship flourished and tea caddies were produced in a range of shapes and designs. \u2018The form of tea caddies changed during the early 19th century,\u2019 says Stephen Wild of Patrick Sandberg Antiques. He describes the tall, three-legged teapoy as \u2018a caddy, but mounted on a turned stem and base\u2019.<\/p>\n

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