Furniture for exotic drinks

Exotic new drinks

The tray tables date from the 18th century, when the consumption of exotic hot drinks really took off. In Denmark, the flourishing period meant an escalation in trade with far distant lands, and coffee was imported from the Orient in vast quantities. The same was true of tea from Asia and cocoa beans from South and Central America. At the time, these drinks were a costly affair and therefore the reserve of the well-to-do. 

Over hot vapours

The drinking of coffee, tea and hot chocolate was considered a cultivated practice, and the 18th century Norwegian-Danish writer Ludvig Holberg wrote humorously about the benefits of these beverages in one of his famous epistles:

“If tea and coffee are good for nothing else, they have put an end to the drunkenness that prevailed. Now our wives and daughters can make ten visits in an afternoon and return quite sober!”

As Holberg’s words tell us, in many cases coffee, tea and hot chocolate replaced alcoholic beverages, and more and more coffee and tea houses opened in the major European cities. These houses came to be the setting for a whole new culture, where the intake of the exotic new beverages was pivotal. The so-called tea rooms were actually a place where ladies could be seen socialising in public, where they could meet and talk with other cultured wives or be courted by their chosen one over the hot vapours of tea.

A place for hot drinks

As the popularity of the drinks grew, so, too, did the need for a piece of furniture on which to stand the warm cups and jugs, etc. There was also a need for a place to stand the tea urn, which, with its hot legs and dripping spout, could easily destroy an ordinary wooden worktop. Enter the tray table! With its faience tray, it could withstand both heat and water. Tray tables were expensive pieces of furniture, regarded as showpieces, and it goes without saying that only the most affluent of families could afford to buy them.

They were made at the faience factories so prevalent in that day, and were often beautifully decorated with patterns inspired by nature and narrative motifs. Some of the most prominent factories were Store Kongensgade Faience Factory in Copenhagen, Rørstrand Porcelain Factory in Stockholm and Schleswig Faience Factory in the town of the same name, which was then a Danish duchy.

From Schleswig to Stockholm

Two of the tray tables up for auction come from the faience factory in Schleswig, which was founded in 1755 and remains one of the most famous. One of the tray tables is decorated in blue underglaze with rocailles, foliage and flower baskets. The underside of the tray bears the signature “S/C # B”, which stands for “Schleswig” and the painter C.F. Bade, who was employed at the factory from 1764-91.

The other two tray tables up for auction come from Rörstrand in Sweden, which was founded in 1725 by the Dane Johan Wolff from the Store Kongensgade Faience Factory in Copenhagen. One of tray tables was commissioned for the wedding of the Swedish couple Elisabet Jenning and Carl Hugo Hamilton, and the decoration therefore includes the alliance coat of arms of their families. The reverse of the faience tray is signed “Stockholm 20/7-1752” and the initial “E” of the painter, which presumably stands for Erik Fahlström.

Auction: Wednesday 18 September 2 pm at Bredgade 33 in Copenhagen
Preview: 12-16 September at the same adress

View all the tray tables

View all the items including in the auction