Name/Title
Coffee CupEntry/Object ID
A1982.14.111Description
Coffee or chocolate cup having a cylindrical body with a slightly flared rim; loop handle (now gone); and rounded bottom standing on a foot rim; painted in the Imari palette of underglaze blue, overglaze red enamel, and gold with an iron brown line on the edge of the rim; lines at the outer rim, waist, and foot; floral sprays around the body and rounded bottom; and a latticework border at the inner rim.Context
While a large volume of teawares were excavated at Stenton, tea was not the only imported hot beverage being consumed in the house. Accounts indicate that chocolate and a chocolate pot were purchased or present in the house, as well as coffee and a coffee pot. This cup could have been used for either beverage.
The chocolate drunk in the eighteenth century was very different from the hot chocolate we enjoy today. It was prepared very thick, was largely unsweetened, and with little to no milk. Chocolate was viewed as more of a medicinal beverage than a sweet treat. Coffee, on the other hand, played an important social role in the eighteenth century. Coffee houses were popular meeting places, mostly for a male clientele, in both England and the American colonies. They were a venue for academic and philosophical discussions and conducting business, and played an important role in the enlightenment.Collection
CeramicsMade/Created
Date made
circa 1700 - circa 1740Time Period
18th CenturyPlace
City
JingdezhenLocation
ChinaRegion
East AsiaContinent
AsiaMaterial
Hard Paste PorcelainRelationships
Related Places
Place
Location
StentonCity
PhiladelphiaState/Province
PennsylvaniaCountry
United States of AmericaContinent
North AmericaRelated Events
Event
1982 Archeological Excavation
