Description

A rare early English antique silver coffee pot with straight tapering sides, side handle and domed lid typical of the period. Britannia standard silver*. Large size and good weight. A nice feature is the little hinged flap on the end of the spout. The matching stand has a turned wooden handle and a fixed integral burner with a detachable wick holder.

Weight of coffee pot 769 grams, 24.7 troy ounces, stand 325 grams, 10.4 troy ounces.

Height of pot 24 cms, total height 33 cms.

Contains 1000 ml.

Pot – London 1705. Stand – 1707.

Both by maker William Lukin.

Literature: A coffee pot on warmer is usually known as a coffee biggin because of the use of a burner, biggins usually being camp fire pots. It is unusual at this date for a coffee pot to have a matching warming stand, coffee biggins are not normally found until later in the 18th century during George III’s reign.

*Britannia Standard silver. In 1696, so extensive had become the melting and clipping of coinage that the silversmiths were forbidden to use the sterling standard for their wares, but had to use a new higher standard, 95.8 per cent. New hallmarks were ordered, “the figure of a woman commonly called Britannia” and the lion’s head erased (torn off at the neck) replacing the lion passant and the leopard’s head crowned. This continued until the old standard of 92.5 per cent was restored in 1720. Britannia standard silver still continues to be produced even today.