Past Imperfect, The Art of Inventive Repair

This globular teapot with puce floral enamel decoration and orange bands was made in China in the middle to late 1700s. It measures 5.5 inches high, 7.5 inches from handle to spout. At some point in its early life, the handle broke off and a bronze replacement, with the remains of rattan wrapping, was attached. Most teapots I find have one form or another of metal handle protection to help insulate delicate hands from the hot contents. Many examples in my collection have intricately woven patterns using more than one color of rattan, and I imagine the customer would have been charged more for these finer artistic flourishes.

This teapot with similar form and decoration suggests what the original handle on my teapot might have looked like.

Photo courtesy of Hampshire Cultural Trust

Tags: Chinese, globular, metal handle, porcelain

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 21st, 2021 at 5:34 pm and is filed under teapot. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.