Unknown Chinese
Cuspidor

Public Domain

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Images(2)

Maker Unknown Chinese

CultureChinese

Titles

Cuspidor
Spit Pot

Datec. 1730–1750

Made inChina, Asia

MediumHard-paste porcelain with enamel

Dimensions2 3/4 × 4 7/16 × 4 3/8 in. (7 × 11.3 × 11.1 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, museum purchase funded by Jeffery D. Hildebrand and Ralph Eads at "One Great Night in November, 2008"

Object numberB.2008.9

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Newport Room

On view

Explore Further

Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

CERAMICS

DescriptionIn Colonial America, social customs were considerably relaxed by comparison to modern day standards. The use of tobacco, whether by smoking, snuffing, or chewing, was widespread, and the spit pot was a necessity for those who chose the latter method. The form was introduced to western markets towards the end of the 17th century by the Dutch East India Company. The popularity of these little vessels is shown by an inventory listing 299 examples on the Geldermalsen, a Dutch trading ship that sank in 1752. Understandably, most did not survive, either damaged through frequent use or perhaps discarded when they were no longer fashionable.
Provenance Research Ongoing Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Sticker on bottom: Polly Latham #2398
Printed on sticker on the underside: "ELINOR GORDON / Oriental / Lowestoft / VILLANOVA, PA."

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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