Paul Revere Teapot

Neoclassical Silver Teapot
Paul Revere
Created 1791

This exceptional silver teapot is the work of Paul Revere, the legendary patriot and silversmith. A masterpiece of neoclassical design, it features elegantly shaped panels and bold fluted details—an innovative departure from tradition that showcases Revere’s ingenuity. One of the few surviving examples of its kind, this teapot represents both artistic and historical significance, making it a collector’s treasure.

Commissioned in 1791 by Hannah Speakman Rowe, a loyal patron of Revere’s workshop, this teapot was part of a larger silver service that reflected the latest in neoclassical refinement. Rowe, the wife of a prominent Boston merchant, purchased it along with a matching sugar dish on January 20, 1791. Later that year, she commissioned a substantial tea urn, now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. All three pieces were engraved with her initials, “HR.”

Revere’s daybooks document this commission, illustrating a pivotal shift in his silver production. Prior to the American Revolution, he crafted just nine round teapots, but in the late 18th century, he embraced a fluted, neoclassical style. According to scholar Deborah A. Federhen, this evolution was influenced by both the rising affluence of his clientele and a groundbreaking advancement in his workshop: his acquisition of a flatting mill in 1785. This innovation allowed him to craft teapots from sheet silver shaped around wooden patterns, rather than painstakingly raising them from ingots—resulting in a refined aesthetic that exemplified elegance.

Born in 1734 to a Huguenot silversmith, Paul Revere's patriotism and his contribution to the American decorative arts are of inestimable value. He was immortalized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, which tells of how he heroically rode through the countryside warning of the approaching British troops at the beginning of the American Revolution. This legendary event, along with his extraordinary work as a silversmith, has ensured a timeless legacy for Revere. In 1768, on the eve of the American Revolution, Revere crafted the “Sons of Liberty Bowl,” now housed at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Both before and after serving his country during the Revolution, Revere was at the forefront of American silver, producing elegant bowls, sauceboats and teapots such as this very fine example.

7“ high x 11” wide x 3 5/8“ deep

Literature:
Beth Carver Wees, Early American Silver in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2013, p. 232

Exhibited:
Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, loaned 1941, 1942, 1967, 1970
Richmond, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, 1980s–2014

Provenance:
Mrs. Hannah Rowe (1725-1805), to her great niece
Hannah Rowe Linzee Amory (1775-1845)
Francis S. Parker, Cambridge, Massachusetts (by descent)
Private Collection, United States
M.S. Rau, New Orleans