Since we first launched Show & Tell in June of 2010, thousands of people have posted photographs and short stories about things in their collections. When someone has a question about an item, they label it as an Unsolved Mystery, and when a member of the Collectors Weekly community answers their question, they change the label to Solved. Here’s one of our favorites.
Mystery of the tea kettle
One the first people to post an item on Show & Tell was a visitor named New_to_2nd_Hand_Greatness. “I went to my first ever flea market yesterday,” the visitor wrote, “and this teapot jumped out at me. It’s just awesome.” But New_to_2nd_Hand_Greatness was troubled: “Here’s the problem: I can’t find anything like it at all, anywhere. As far as I know it might have been purchased at Walmart 2 months ago or purchased 65 years ago and lovingly cared for.”
Who solved it
Into the breach stepped MsDowAntiques, who found a similar piece online advertised as an “Art Deco Streamline Moderne Teapot.” When her observation was supplemented by an eBay auction that Chadakoin happened to notice, MsDowAntiques was able to complete the circle: “I guess we were trying too hard to find it using vintage terms,” she wrote. “Chadakoin has definitely found it — it’s a Noritake Colorwave Tea Kettle, alright. New, but way cool!”
Got a favorite Solved Mystery you’d like us to highlight on The Daily Weekly? Let us know!
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Lots of new stuff out there that looks vintage. Lots of vintage that looks new. Great design can be timeless. That’s why everyone is glad to have collectorsweekly.com to help with identifying items.
I bought a copper tea kettle with delft handle. What is the purpose of the spout cover insert?
I, too, have been trying to find out about that tea kettle. I found an orange one at Salvation Army 4 years ago (2 bucks), assumed was vintage, saw the grey one on Etsy after it had sold, therefore zero information. Thank you for mystery solved! (i love mine, tempted to try & sell it but looks great on stove top!)
This is a Noratake colorwave kettle. I have the same one. I got it from the Bay in Canada in 2001.