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Teakettle

1710–20
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 750
As in England and the Netherlands, tea drinking became increasingly popular in colonial America, creating a demand for specialized tea equipment such as teapots, sugar bowls, and creampots. This bold, pear-shaped teakettle with bail handle is an extremely rare form in American silver. Its decorative bird's-head spout, distinctively Dutch in inspiration, enlivens the unadorned body, which probably sat on an accompanying spirit-lamp stand. The kettle descended in the de Peyster family to Anne (Stevenson) Van Cortlandt (1774–1821)—whose initials are engraved in script on the side of the body—and, ultimately, to the donor.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Teakettle
  • Maker: Cornelius Kierstede (1674–ca. 1757)
  • Date: 1710–20
  • Geography: Made in New York, New York, United States
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Silver
  • Dimensions: Overall: 10 1/8 x 10 5/8 in. (25.7 x 27 cm); 47 oz. 13 dwt. (1481.7 g)
    Base: Diam. 7 3/8 in. (18.7 cm)
    Body: H. 7 7/16 in. (18.9 cm)
  • Credit Line: Bequest of James Stevenson Van Cortlandt, 1917
  • Object Number: 40.145a, b
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

More Artwork

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Cornelius Kierstede
1700–1720
Candlestick, Cornelius Kierstede American, Silver, American
Candlestick
Cornelius Kierstede
ca. 1705
Candlestick, Cornelius Kierstede American, Silver, American
Candlestick
Cornelius Kierstede
ca. 1705
Snuffer Stand, Cornelius Kierstede American, Silver, American
Snuffer Stand
Cornelius Kierstede
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Two-handled Bowl, Cornelius Kierstede American, Silver, American
Two-handled Bowl
Cornelius Kierstede
1700–1710

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