Collection: Tea Cup

The teacup and saucer originated in China at the time of the near-simultaneous introduction of tea and porcelain. Theoriginal teacup design did not have a handle or a saucer. At some point a ring-shaped cupholder appeared to protect thefingers and eventually evolved into a saucer!.3! The cups in 17th century were tiny, with the width about 244 inches across atthe top,1%4 at the bottom, and the depth of 1% inches. The saucers measured 4% inches across.

The Europeanmanufacturers initially copied the handle-less Oriental designsl4 exported from the Japanese port of lmari or from thesouthern Chinese port of Canton (part of the Canton System, 1757-1842), now Guangzhou. The teacup handles wereintroduced in the West in the early 19th century.!5! The handles originally became a feature of chocolate drinking cups inthe 17th century, while teacups were still handle-less.

Teacup plates originated in England in the early 1800s and provided a rest for the cup and a space for a light snack, wentout of fashion in the second half of the 19th century.