Chocolate pot
1781
Medium
Silver; wood
Dimensions
Overall (confirmed): 10 1/4 × 9 3/8 × 5 1/4 in. (26 × 23.8 × 13.3 cm)
Classification
Metalwork-Silver
Culture
French, Paris
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1928
Accession Number
28.156
Art Historical Context
Step into the opulent world of 18-century French aristocracy with this elegant chocolate pot crafted by master silversmith Pierre Vères in Paris, 1781. Measuring a compact 10¼ × 9⅜ × 5¼ inches, the pot is fashioned from gleaming silver with wooden accents, exemplifying the exquisite metalwork of the Louis XVI period. Vallières, a prominent Parisian maker, specialized in luxurious domestic silver, blending neoclassical restraint with refined detailing to create functional yet sumptuous objects. Chocolate pots like this one were status symbols among the elite, who savored hot chocolate—a fashio...