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tline3open  Sugar casters vs. peppers.

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Author Topic:   Sugar casters vs. peppers.
Leo Passant

Posts: 24
Registered: Dec 2005

iconnumber posted 01-15-2007 06:10 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Leo Passant     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
[01-2835]

I am confused! Not too difficult, I know, but I've been wondering about what differentiates sugar casters from peppers (or pepperettes, pepper pots etc.)?

In my youth, pepper was contained in a pair of baluster shape casters about 5"-6" tall with small dot punched holes around the top to prevent one from shaking too much of the fine pepper onto ones plate of roast beef.
Caster sugar, on the other hand, was served up in a massive (probably about 7"-8" tall) caster with intricately cut apertures around its top.

However, these days, I see the terms sugar caster and pepper pot both frequently applied to what I would regard as peppers with simple round holes and I've seen one monstrous octagonal sugar caster with the most beautifully cut apertures described as a pepper pot.

I appreciate that pre-20th century pepper was ground at home and often wasn't as fine as today's pepper "dust", but surely there must be some positive distinction between the two vessels?

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Hose_dk

Posts: 400
Registered: May 2008

iconnumber posted 01-09-2011 02:13 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Hose_dk     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I was searching the forum and found this old post. Does anyone have an answer to the question. Casters for sugar, salt, pepper, cayenne, curry or even sand used when writing with ink.

I have seen that sugar casters are normally larger than others. And some must have smaller holes. These little things might have a meaning.
Yesterday I bought this.



Late empire caster marked 2 times with GW Danish master from Århus Georg Christian Adler Wolf (Volf) he uses both W & V. Born 1819 in Haderslev, works in Hamburg. Citizenship in 1850 in Århus October 14th. Hee dies 1867 vidow continues until 1870.

The caster is heavily used - and the late empire style is not really my thing. But I found it at a reasonable price. I will post a few more casters for debate. What where they used for?

Another late empire caster. This time Copenhagen 1827.


And two more Randers 1813 left and an English right London 1845


And finally Copenhagen from 1819. Note the 1819 and 1813 they are empire before this late empire - the late added did something with look.

All pretty most same sice. Late empire 8cm - the 2 empire 10cm in height.

And question was - whats is the difference between use of different casters? What differentiated the different purposes in those days?
?

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vathek

Posts: 966
Registered: Jun 99

iconnumber posted 01-10-2011 08:53 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for vathek     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I would also wonder if pounce pots get confused for either?

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Hose_dk

Posts: 400
Registered: May 2008

iconnumber posted 01-10-2011 11:57 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Hose_dk     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
So I learned a new word today. Its called pounce pot.

We can reason following. Cheap products must have larger casters than expensive products.

Sugar casters tend to be larger than others.
If you use large amounts of product - then larger casters.

If holes are small then fine powder, if holes are large then not so fine powder.

We tage another late empire caster.


And await some clever answers.

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Kimo

Posts: 1627
Registered: Mar 2003

iconnumber posted 01-10-2011 12:28 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Kimo     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Pounce pots are the same thing as sand casters - a container with holes in the top to sprinkle sand or pounce (a kind of fine powder often made from ground animal bones) onto your paper or velum after you have finishing writing on it to quickly soak up excess wet ink.

I can not provide a clear definition of the differences among all of these kinds of casters, and perhaps there isn't much real difference other than how they were originally sold as I would guess you can use them interchangeably.

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seaduck

Posts: 350
Registered: Dec 2006

iconnumber posted 01-10-2011 05:07 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for seaduck     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I would add that pounce was --until the era of CAD and before that, mylar pencils -- used by architects and drafters, not for ink, but to pick up soft graphite from pencil lines and to keep drawings from smudging. A little pounce would lift drawing instruments ever so slightly above the surface of the drawing vellum.

Never saw an architect with a silver pounce pot, tho!

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Ulysses Dietz
Moderator

Posts: 1265
Registered: May 99

iconnumber posted 01-11-2011 07:57 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Ulysses Dietz     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
In AMerican silver, Pepper casters are small (4-5 inches high) and sugar casters are larger (6-8 inches)...Pepper was always costly and used sparingly.

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Polly

Posts: 1970
Registered: Nov 2004

iconnumber posted 01-11-2011 10:35 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Polly     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Another reason to make pepper shakers small: it's better when ground fresh. I don't know if that influenced the design in real life, but it would influence me if I were a pepper-shaker maker.

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