sugar bowl with lid

sugar bowl with lid , circa 1790, Qing dynasty (1644–1911)

Where object was made: China

Material/technique: porcelain

Dimensions:
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 14 x 12.5 x 11.2 cm
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 5 1/2 x 4 15/16 x 4 7/16 in

Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial

Accession number: 1928.1763.c,d

On display: Stewart Gallery

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From the 1500s through the early 1800s, sugar was one of the most prized and lucrative European imports. It was also a significant driver of the transatlantic slave trade. Captured Africans were shipped to Caribbean Islands to harvest sugar on plantations, which would be processed and shipped to New England and elsewhere. These decorative bowls speak to growing appetites for sugar and prompt you to consider how sugar was obtained—and at what cost?