Boiling point at auction as a rare teapot and cover sells for £69,000
A rare teapot and cover recently unearthed from circa 1765 with a political message not too far removed from today’s recession hit times made a staggering £69,000 in Hansons auction on 15 April.
Commenting on the price, which is thought to be a record price for a teapot, Charles Hanson, manager of Hansons and BBC1 Bargain Hunt commented, 'the price really was quite remarkable. The saleroom became a theatre as bidding slowly moved up. After £20,000, the bidding became a blur as bidding rose in £1000 increments. The bidding battle became a frenzy of activity as an American collector fought off two London buyers to take the prized pot back to the States at £69,000'
Rarity value commented Charles Hanson made it 'a must have' for collectors and it became an object of status for serious collectors' around the globe'
Our buyer an American was delighted with his purchase. It is unlikely we will ever come across a similar teapot remarked Charles Hanson'
Commenting on the teapot which was made in the very early years of the reign of King George III and before he went mad and thirty years prior to the French Revolution, Mr Hanson remarked, ‘its survival really is remarkable and it is intact’
Manufactured in a pottery body known as creamware, the teapot is inscribed with a verse ‘ Success to Trade in America’ whilst the reverse notes ‘No Stamp Act’
The teapot had great political significance in 1765 since the Stamp Act was the first example of the British Crown imposing a direct tax on its American colonists. The act required that all legal documents and papers be printed on stamp paper (a special type of paper taxable by England).
The reason for the tax was a result of the debt that England incurred during the Seven Years War . England's debt had reached about £800,000,000 in 1764, and Prime Minister of Great Britain George Grenville's goal was too extract as much as possible from the colonists.
The duty essentially set in motion a chain of events which led to the American Revolution in 1776. We can only wonder what President Obama in America and our own Prime minister Gordon Brown would make of the teapot today. The teapot has certainly been discovered at a time which may hit the raw nerve of our recession hit countries which perhaps should have known better judging by history
The teapot is likely to have been manufactured in Staffordshire by Josiah Wedgwood It is known Josiah Wedgwood was a supporter of Free Trade in America since Wedgwood was popular and exported in large quantities in the second half of the 18th century.
It would suggest with the recent failings of Wedgwood and takeover of the business by an American firm of investors, the small teapot certainly foresaw its future.
The auction on 15 April held by Hansons took place in The Mackworth Hotel, Ashbourne Road near Derby.