George III 'London' Shaped Teapot, Bright Cut Decoration, by
William Bateman, London 1816
(s203A)
A beautiful George III 'London' shaped rectangular teapot,
with bright cut decoration. square shaped spout and standing on four ball feet.
This magnificent teapot was made by William Bateman in London in 1816.
William Bateman was the grandson of the famous silversmith Hester Bateman and
entered the mark used on this teapot in 1815.
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The profile of the teapot is of a rectangular shape with
curved body decorated with floral bright cut decoration. There is a rectangular
domed hinged lid with rectangular wooden finial. The spout of the teapot is of a
square section swan neck shape with applied bright cut decoration. A rectangular
section angular handle perfectly balances the spout.
Above the curved sides of the teapot are a series of curved stepped bands
leading up to a protruding rim which has applied gadrooning.
This gadrooned rim round the shoulder of the teapot is
embellished with lines of beads radiating outwards from the teapot. The shoulder
surface is decorated with more bright cut decoration around the raised collar to
the hinged lid. This decoration takes the form of leaves
The band of bright cut decoration on the main body of the
teapot features flower heads linked in a garland of foliage, an extremely
elegant design.
The elegantly shaped spout is embellished with bright cut
zigzag lines around the shape of the spout. Bright cut decoration is applied to
all four flat faces of the spout.
The spout terminates in a very fine and shapely pouring lip
allowing tea to be poured beautifully from the teapot.
The teapot is raised on a rectangular base which has four
supporting balls, one at each corner.
Each of the ball feet is cast in silver and has a tiny 'blow
hole' which is to allow air to escape during the manufacturing process.
The handle of the teapot is in the same light colour wood as
the lid finial. The handle is of a rectangular section and angular in shape. It
has a curved thumb piece on the top to aid gripping and pouring tea from the
pot.
The handle is fixed very firmly into the teapot by two silver
rectangular collets. The handle is then fixed in with silver pins.
There is a rectangular wooden finial to the teapot's lid,
this having a silver bolt through it to secure it by a wing nut on the inside of
the lid. There is carved gadroon decoration round the wooden finial to mirror
the gadroon decoration round the shoulder of the actual teapot.
Although too small to capture in a picture, the wing nut
securing the finial bolt is hallmarked with a Lion Passant for sterling silver.
The teapot is fully hallmarked on the main teapot body. These
marks are struck to the right hand side of the handle within the main band of
bright cut decoration. Because they are in the bright cut decoration they are
not too easy to spot! The lid is also hallmarked with the Lion passant, date
letter 'a' for 1816 and makers initials of 'W'B for William Bateman. A full
description of the hallmarks are given in the hallmarks section below.
On the under side of the teapots base there are some
scratched numbers, including 18 13, which is the original weight in ounces and
penny weights. There are also the scrape marks made by the Assay Office when
testing the silver quality before hallmarking the teapot, this is a nice feature
to see on a piece of silver.
A magnificent 'London' shaped teapot, by William Bateman (who
was the grandson of the famous Hester Bateman), made in London in 1816
Size
and Weight: (values are approximate)
Marks:
The teapot is marked in full on the side of the body to the
right of the handle within the band of bright cut decoration. These marks
comprise the Makers Mark of 'W.B' for William Bateman; Lion Passant Mark for
sterling silver, Crowned Leopards head Mark of the London Assay Office; Date
Letter 'a' for 1816 and the Sovereign's Head Duty Mark of King George III.
In addition to the main set of full hallmarks on the body of
the teapot, there is a short set on the inside of the lid, these comprise the
Lion Passant Mark for sterling silver; Date Letter 'a' for 1816 and the Makers
Mark of 'W.B' for William Bateman. There is also a Lion Passant mark for
sterling silver stamped on one wing of the wing nut that secures the finial to
the lid, but this mark is too small to picture.
This delightful George III teapot is in very good condition
with no major dents, repairs or restoration. The bright cut decoration is in a
crisp and clear condition. The only very minor imperfections are that the
hallmarks on the main body of the teapot are a little rubbed, although still
perfectly readable and the wooden lid finial has some cracks in it as shown in
the pictures below. This wooden finial could easily be replace, if so desired,
but being the original, I would prefer to see it remain. It is quite firm and
not a problem physically. This is certainly a very fine and decorative teapot,
one that would be very elegant used at a tea table for afternoon tea.
