Minneapolis Institute of Art

Coffeepot

Alexander Petrie

Date

c. 1755

Medium

Silver, wood

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Tea was the hands-down favorite hot drink in Britain’s North American colonies, partly because coffee, which had to be ground, required more effort to brew. But for wealthy households with servants or enslaved labor, serving coffee could be a subtle show of wealth and social station. That may have been one reason the original owners of this pot commissioned it. The silversmith, Alexander Petrie, worked in in Charleston, South Carolina. United States, Americas

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