Tea Caddy
Date1859
Mediumsterling silver
Dimensions4 1/4 × 3 1/2 × 2 1/2 inches (10.8 × 8.9 × 6.4 cm)
MarkingsMaker's mark stamped on the bottom: GU [in rectangle];
Hallmarks stamped on the bottom: K [Gothic, in shield]; lion passant; queen's head; Birmingham Anchor;
Retailer's mark stamped on the bottom: ALFRED GOAD & SONS. / 39, WESTBOURNE GROVE. LONDON. WEST
Credit LineGift of Frank A. Rizza, M.D. and family.
Object number2012.15.144.a-.b
CopyrightThe images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextThis sterling silver oval tea caddy is gadrooned around its lower body and inscribed on the front with a family crest. The lid has bands around the rim and knop.
The term 'caddy' is derived from the Chinese word 'catty', a Chinese unit of weight by which tea used to be sold. The English then started using the word caddy to mean a container for tea.
Silversmith George Unite was born in Birmingham, England in 1798, and apprenticed to Joseph Willmore in 1810. He worked in partnership with James Hilliard from 1825, but also registered his own maker's mark, GU, with the Birmingham Assay Office in 1832. The Hilliard partnership ended before 1845, and Unite continued business under his own name. The business became George Unite & Sons c. 1865. Unite died in 1896 and the company merged with William Henry Lyde's electroplate company in 1928, to become George Unite Sons & Lyde Ltd.
