Patrick Robertson

Scottish (active 1751–1790)

Tea Urn

1770

Silver

Gift of Mary Alice McClendon

2009.20a-b

Robertson’s reputation in Edinburgh was considerable. He was commissioned to create an award by the City Council, and his brother was the foremost historian of the Scottish Enlightenment at the time. A similarly ornate urn designed by Robertson is housed at the Royal Museum of Scotland. Hot water urns were introduced in the 1750s as a better way to serve tea. A heated metal rod or block could be housed in a central flue to keep the liquid warm inside the urn, and a spigot eliminated the necessity of having to lift or pour a heavy pot.

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