CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) FOR JAMES DIXON & SON, SHEFFIELD ELECTROPLATED TEAPOT, 1880of sphere form, with ebony handle, stamped maker's marks and facsimile signature J.D.&S./ CHR. DRESSER/ 2/ 2278/ JAS. DIXON & SONS/ SHEFFIELD, with stamped lozenge mark for 1880 (13.5cm high) Footnote: Literature: Rudoe, J. Design and Manufacture: Evidence from the Dixon & Sons Calculation Books, The Decorative Arts Society 1850 to the Present: Christopher Dresser in Context, Journal 29, 2008: pp.66-83 James Dixon and Sons, Cornish Place, Sheffield, Catalogue, 1885, page 96 Halen, W. Christopher Dresser: A Pioneer of Modern Design, Phaidon Press Ltd, London, 1993, plate 205 Whiteway, M. Christopher Dresser 1834-1904, Skira 2001, plate 95 Note: This teapot appears in one of a series of costings books held in the archives at Sheffield. The books date from 1879 to 1883 and reveal that Dresser produced approximately 80 designs for Dixon’s, not all of which are thought to have gone into full production. This was possibly due to comparative expense of manufacture, but also because of the radical nature of the designs. What the books also show us is how much each item produced cost to make in detail, how they were made and in most cases which were designed by Dresser. Scholarly study of the books has tended to concentrate on the costings for 1879, which contains the famous designs for Japanese teapots, and this spherical teapot which appears in the book with the inscription “1 gill teapot 2278/ Designed by Dr. Dresser”. Looking through the books, the majority of the designs are not illustrated, with the exception of those by Dresser, which usually appear as a thumbnail sketch or photograph. This may be an indication that these more expensive and unusual vessels did not appear in their trade catalogues and were perhaps generally made to order.