Table pieces, utilitarian pieces, decorative pieces? Let everyone the choice to do what he wants. But do not forget their history, linked to that of plants and the secrets they generate. Who says teapot, tisaniere, immediately think infusions, medicinal herbs, well-being plants … and then come the apothecary jars… So many wonders to talk, educate!
From April to 11 November 2013, the Regional House of Tableware keep his task to present dinnerware while making a little wink to the Hospices St Pierre whose primary purpose was other. With value objects of the 17th century to the present, coming from private collections, museums, various manufactures and different areas, the 2013 exhibition is the Book open, educational, teaching and speaking for this theme, always still current.
Knowing that the tea is considered to mid-seventeenth as a remedy ‘aiding digestion”, the teapot appears in the second part of the reign of Louis XIV, often pyriform with a long curved bill and a domed hood, while in the second half of the eighteenth, the sides are often ribbed torsos or flat…
In the nineteenth century, we begin to absorb herbal infusions for pleasure whereas they were previously regarded as remedies. So appears the teapot or teapot night light, consisting of a jug, a cylinder open top and sides, and a bucket with wick and oil, to keep the tea warm and disseminate a low light. Originally, this source of heat and light were for medical use.
Apothecary Pots have different forms. Often finely decorated, they are as old as the art of care: they are made of all kinds of materials (wood, horn, ivory, marble, alabaster, glass, tin, sandstone, earthenware, porcelain…) Some pots were decorated not only with friends registrations but also with coats of arms from noble families or religious orders, with numerals and attributes which indicate the source.
An exhibition for all age groups, both for discovery and for reminders of the old days … and each, according to his sensibility, tastes, will find an interest or simply fun.