20th C Meriden Silver Plate 3 Piece Tea Service

This three piece tea set design comes from the early part of the 20th century, from the Meriden Britannia Company after it became part of the International Silver Company (formed 1898). Despite being one of the largest silverware companies in the world this particular design is not common and as far as we can research not mass produced, it is made from a heavy gauge metal plus high quality silver plate, and boasts an art deco streamlined form with ebonised handles, split and over the top handles matched on all pieces, the covers are all shaped to fit the form seamlessly. It is simple elegance that highlights the quality of the set.

Size : the teapot has a maximum height to top of handle of 21 cm which is mirrored in the maximum width handle to spout width (21cm) the body has a 14 cm diameter . Sugar is 15 cm high and 11 cm diameter. Milk is 13 cm high and width handle to spout a matching 13 cm. (it has to be recognised the design has gone for some careful balance in the geometry) Weight: Teapot 747 gm, Sugar 406 gm, Milk 248 gm.

Condition: The whole set is in very good condition, handles are all tight and lids fit perfectly, there is no repairs and no plate wear. A few small signs of age and use (as one can see from the pictures the tiny dinks are almost invisible but noted for accuracy).

Historical notes:
In 1876, the Meriden Britannia Company at the Centenial Exposition in Philadelphia the company won the First Place medal for plated wares. According to Sotheby's in New York, "The publicity of the award and the impression the firm made on the fair's 8 million visitors was continued by the catalogues and other intensive marketing by the end of the 1870s Meriden Britannia Co. was considered the largest silverware company in the world."

In 1898 Meriden Britannia Company ceased to exist as an independent entity and became part of the International Silver Company
Meriden Britannia Company designs are included in many museum collections, including the Brooklyn Museum, New York Dallas Museum of Art Davis Museum at Wellesley College, MA Jewish Museum, New York Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, CT Mint Museum, Charlotte, NC Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England Wolfsonian FIU, Miami Beach, FL Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT