What Is a Chocolate Pot?
Although a few companies still manufacture chocolate pots, most of these vessels have been relegated to the status of antiques and collectibles, and chocolate pot collectors pay in the hundreds and even thousands of dollars to acquire one. If you collect chocolate pots, you can thank the Mayan civilization for starting it all. They invented the drink that evolved into the hot chocolate you know today. Does this Spark an idea?
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History of Chocolate
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The Maya are credited with creating a drink by mixing water, chile peppers, cornmeal, and ground cacao seeds hundreds of years ago. Through trading with the Maya, the Aztecs then acquired the cacao seeds. For both the Maya and Aztecs, chocolate became an important part of royal and religious ceremonies. In 1521, during the conquest of Mexico, the Spanish conquistadors discovered the seeds and took them back home to Spain, where new recipes were developed. About 100 years later, the drink spread throughout Europe and the Europeans began adding sugar and cream to their hot chocolate.
History of the Chocolate Pot
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Eventually, the Europeans decided that this wonderful drink required a special pot. The earliest chocolate pots were made with silver and copper. Later on, European porcelain manufactures, such as the Limoge Company in France, began to make hot chocolate pots. The pots had a right-angle handle and a hole in the lid in which a wooden stirrer, called a molinet or molinillo, stirred the mixture.
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Chocolate Pot or Coffee Pot
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You must look closely to distinguish the difference between chocolate and coffee pots. The coffee spout is long and sometimes arched. The chocolate pot is short. The coffee pot has a built-in filter that separates the coffee grounds from the drink, but the chocolate pot does not.
Chocolate Pots of 17th-Century England
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In 17th-Century England, chocolate pots were made of silver and decorated with raised designs. The family crest was also stamped on the side. A chocolate pot bore a wooden handle angled at 90 degrees.
Chocolate Pots of the 18th-Century New World
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The chocolate drink and pot eventually made their way to the new world. In 18th-Century Williamsburg, chocolate pots and coffee pots looked a lot alike. The stirring rod was about the only difference. The English-speaking colonials called this rod a chocolate mill. The lid of the chocolate pot still had a hole in the top, but now there was a ornamental finial to close the hole when the pot wasn't in use. The chocolate mill consisted of a turned wooden handle with wood or metal attached to one end. As the chocolate cooked over an open fire, the chocolate was whirled between both hands to mix the brew with a thick froth on top.
Asian and European Chocolate Pots of the 19th Century
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By the 19th century, Europeans were also making their chocolate pots out of copper, china and porcelain. The chocolate pots were now larger, more detailed and adorned with roses. Germans changed the shape of the pot, and then France adopted it and made the pot slimmer and taller. The Japanese also contributed to the design of chocolate pots. Although the styles, patterns and shapes were similar to the European version, the flowers resembled Asian paintings. The pots were also slender and had a simpler handle. The Japanese created a raised three-dimensional effect on the pots called moriage.
Chocolate Pots of the 21st Century
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A few manufactures make chocolate pots in the traditional style using old and modern-day materials. If you aren't interested in buying an antique or collectible chocolate pot, but would like a new one, there are websites from which you can purchase one.
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