Antique English Victorian Black Walnut Tea Caddy. Interior covered space, metal hinges, and a brass keyhole and top handle shaped like a branch in a delicately curving Art Nouveau style. 

Condition: Commensurate with age. 

Size: 4 3/4 x 5 3/4 x 4 1/2 in. 

A tea caddy is a box, jar, canister, or other receptacle used to store tea. When first introduced to Europe from Asia, tea was extremely expensive, and kept under lock and key. The containers used were often highly decorative, to fit in with the rest of a drawing-room or other reception area. The word is believed to be derived from catty, the Chinese pound. The earliest examples that came to Europe were of Chinese porcelain, and similar in shape to the ginger-jar. They had Chinese-style lids or stoppers, and were most frequently blue and white. Until roughly 1800 they were commonly called tea canisters. By the Georgian era in England the caddy came in countless shapes, designs, and materials, reflecting a growing artistic appreciation for functional sculpting.

Commensurate with age. 

All items are sold AS IS. Lot and condition details are for descriptive purposes only. Sarasota Estate Auction is not responsible for errors and/or omissions of condition. The absence of a condition report does not imply that the lot is perfect or free from wear, flaws, or characteristics of age. Please bid according to your own expertise, or request any additional information and/or photographs you deem necessary.