Description:
Chinese export porcelain breakfast cup, part of a 38-piece teaset decorated with the insignia of the Society of the Cincinnati, the eagle badge, over the initials "DT", the cipher of David Townsend of Boston, Massachusetts. This teaset, which is one of Historic Deerfield's greatest ceramic treasures, was ordered by Samuel Shaw, supercargo of the famous American ship, Empress of China, for his friend, David Townsend. In his letter (HD 56.105B), Shaw informed Townsend that he was sending "as a mark of my esteem" a 45-piece teaset "ornamented with the Cincinnati and your cypher." Both Shaw and Townsend had served under Washington during the American Revolution, and were founding members, along with Major General Henry Knox, of the Society of the Cincinnati in May 1783, a fraternal organization of French and American Revolutionary War officers. Shaw continued to be involved with trade activities with China until his death in 1794. After suffering for eight months of a "liver complaint", Shaw died near the Cape of Good Hope on his way home from Canton. The teaset descended in the Townsend family along with a portrait of Dr. Townsend, his Cincinnati certificate, and a letter from Shaw about the porcelain. According to a list at the end of Shaw's letter, a standard teaset consisted of two teapots with stands, sugar bowl and stand, milk ewer (pitcher), waste bowl, shallow dish, six breakfast cups and saucers, and twelve afternoon teacups and saucers. Breakfast cups are actually teacups slightly larger in size than afternoon cups; reasoning for this inconsistency lies in the "multi-purpose" use of the afternoon cups since, in addition to tea, they were used to serve wine and punch, which were additional beverages frequently served at afternoon tea. Each are decorated with a bald eagle with a medal on its breast. Identical sets were given to four other Cincinnati members, and a fifth, considerably larger set, was presented to Major General Knox.
Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+56.105.12 |
