Originally presented to the Sheffield firm of Dixon and Sons as a design by Christopher Dresser (of which he sold them thirty seven ambitious blueprints) this 20th century reproduction - yet amazingly patinated - 'donut' footed teapot is one of the more recognisable from the range.
Regarded as wildly unusual for the late 19th century period, Dresser's teapots were undoubtedly ahead of their time and rarely materialised from production. They were always an expensive combination of sterling silver and ebony, and radical in construction.
It is unknown when exactly the designs were reproduced in the 20th century and who by, but we are delighted to offer two iconic pieces in the SAD Gallery collection. This teapot features four long tapered legs supporting a donut shaped body and straight struts into which the ebonised handle is fixed.
What makes this piece unusual is the extreme oxidisation of the plated surface, revealing the underlying warm brass colour mixed with purple and blue hues typical of patinated silver.
The underside is stamped 'Designed by Dr. C. Dresser' along with the diamond registration mark (which was replaced by the numerical series in 1883). Based on this we would assume that this particular 'donut' design was registered on the 9th of October (B) 1878 (D). However, through our research we have concluded that whoever was responsible for reproduction rights to these teapots (if licensed at all) decided to use the same stamp for every teapot version - it is highly unlikely that every iconic teapot design in all of their shapes and sizes was registered on the very same day, month and year. It also makes little sense if we are to trust that Dixon and Sons only began to buy the designs from 1879 onwards, but could still be commemorative. In any case, this is simply an interesting piece to add to the incomplete puzzle.
