Beaker
(1743-1750)

• CAPODIMONTE PORCELAIN FACTORY, Naples (manufacturer)

These three beakers are based upon a smaller, more open tea bowl form that was ultimately inspired by Chinese Dehua porcelains.The sprigged plum-blossom decoration on two of the beakers directly copies Chinese porcelains. However, the taller and more capacious scale of these beakers suggests that they were more likely used for imbibing coffee than tea, and their luxury medium – porcelain – suggests they were likely to have been used in the home rather than at a public coffee house.