Wednesday 28 May 2014

The Tea Machine

First seen in the late 1700's, the tea machine is a very splendid thing indeed.
Image from History of Old Sheffield Plate,
by Frederick Bradbury.

Used to serve up different types of tea or in some cases, tea and coffee, the tea machine is perhaps the rarest and most collectable of items ever made in Old Sheffield Plate and considered the Holy Grail for Old Sheffield plate collectors. Also known as Tea Equipage, the cost to produce these charming and enigmatic objects meant few could afford them. They would most likely be found in aristocratic households, or homes of the very wealthy.