so we have spoken about tea caddies and caddy spoons all related to the event of tea and now for a rare spoon that was used once again by the elite so that their cup of tea was clear and clean.
as seen the bowl has a fancy pierced pattern that allows the lady of the house to remove all the floating tea leaves from the cup, as loose tea was the fashion.
this spoon is made in one peice with a rail tail half way up the back of the spoon and the narrow handle ending in a sharp point and this allows the lady to clear the leaves that blocked the spout of the teapot.
They were made early mid 1700 by the english and americans.the earlier spoons as the one pictured above are rare with two initials on the reverse of the bowl.Later models were fully hallmarked.
as we see that low tea(english) was quite an affair which royalty loved to attend---and at this point we can then go on about tea cups tea pots.(next blog) and the etiquette of hoasting a tea party.so here is a link that is very detailed of how to hoast a victorian tea...with the correct manners as well.....obviously they had disposable time and had lots of fun....http://www.tea-business-guide.com/tea_curriculum.html

darjeeling tea is a must darling!!
so we have spoken about tea caddies and here i have shown the essentials for the measuring of the then very expensive tea of the 18th century.
the short squat caddy spoon an essential item in fashionable homes of the 18th century measured delicately the amount of tea required.these spoons were locked away in the tea caddy remembering that tea was very expensive and to keep the household from taking their share.
these spoons are highly collectible today as some wonderful examples are featured in museums around the world and of course in private collections.a collector would hunt high and low to find an example to fit into their collection and will pay a commanding price to own yet another one.
as time went by and the new century arrived tea became afforable to all and the silversmiths went into overdrive and produced a huge range of designs also in various metals.
tea is an amazing commodity and not only from china.i would like to take you to the exoctic country of india..so a lot more information on the art of drinking tea and some of the best tea on the market today...more info here....http://www.darjeelingtea.com/home.asp
The spoons featured above from left to right...
1.english hallmarked silver sheffield 1901
2.norwegian hallmarked silver with fancy fret work
3.english hallmarked birmingham 1942(notice rat tail design)
4.norwegian silver hallmarked with a fig of a man with outstretched arms holding a wreath
5.english georgian hallmarked silver london 1790 plain simple form