The world’s most opulent teaware collection has landed in London.
The most historically significant pieces from the Chitra Collection, a private collection of antique teaware owned by tea entrepreneur Nirmal Sethia, are being presented as part of the city’s annual LAPADA Art & Antiques Fair.
Spanning centuries and continents, the collection includes a Chinese tea bowl dating back to the Song Dynasty (960-1279) as well as more recent pieces from Fabergé and Tiffany & Co.
A tea treasure trove
Comprising more than 1700 pieces and worth up to £160 million ($212 million), the Chitra Collection is “the world’s finest and most comprehensive private collection of historic teaware,” according to LAPADA.
Sethia, co-founder chairman of Newby Teas, started the collection through his N. Sethia Foundation in 2011 as a way of preserving tea’s cultural history and inspiring new respect for tea and its related traditions.
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LAPADA Art & Antiques Fair is only the second time that the public has been able to see the collection. Almost 100 pieces were exhibited in 2015 at the National Museum of Kazakhstan, attracting 400,000 visitors over three months.
Look through the gallery above to find out more about some of the most important pieces on display.
The Chitra Collection is on display at the LAPADA Art & Antiques Fair until September 18.