Of all the things you might expect to find in the collections of the world's greatest museums, the humble butter dish probably isn't high on the list. But after a little digging, we discovered that people have been making some surprisingly elaborate things to keep their butter in for centuries.
From painted porcelain and extravagant silver to some wonderfully eccentric Victorian glassware, it turns out there's quite a lot to discover about this everyday kitchen essential.
So, naturally, we went down a bit of a rabbit hole.
Butter dishes before the fridge
Long before the invention of the household refrigerator, keeping butter fresh and presentable required a little more thought.
By the 18th century, British potteries were producing butter dishes, often decorated with intricate patterns and complete with matching lids and trays.
One example, made by the Worcester porcelain factory around 1770–1780, is now held in The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Made from soft-paste porcelain, with its own matching cover and tray, it's an impressively elaborate creation for something designed to hold a little butter.
Image: Worcester Factory, Butter Dish with Cover and Tray, c. 1770–80. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
When butter dishes became seriously fancy
As dining became more elaborate during the 18th and 19th centuries, even the smallest details of the table setting were given special attention.
Silver butter dishes could be quite extravagant. An Irish example made by Christopher Haines in 1789–1790 measures almost 28cm long, which seems rather generous for a pat of butter.
Another favourite is a covered silver dish made in New York around 1840 by William Forbes. It was originally part of an entire tea service, something The Metropolitan Museum of Art notes was extremely unusual.
Clearly, there was a time when no respectable table was complete without an impressive collection of silverware, butter dish included.
Images: Christopher Haines, Butter Dish, 1789–90; William Forbes, Butter Dish, c. 1840. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
The Victorian love affair with glass
By the 19th century, decorative pressed glass had become increasingly popular, and butter dishes were no exception.
Some of the designs were wonderfully over the top. An American blue pressed-glass example from around 1870–1885 features a domed lid, an ornate pedestal base and enough decorative detail to rival a small chandelier.
Another, produced in Pennsylvania around 1888, was made in a pattern called Thousand Eye, a brilliant name for a butter dish.
These pieces were designed to sit proudly amongst the rest of the tableware, often matching other glasses and serving dishes. A far cry from the slightly crumpled foil wrapper lurking in most of our fridges.
Images: American Butter Dish, c. 1870–85; United States Glass Company, Butter Dish, c. 1888. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
A simpler approach
By the 20th century, tastes had changed considerably. Elaborate decoration gradually gave way to cleaner shapes and more practical designs.
A good example is the Blue Line butter dish, designed by Danish designer Grethe Meyer for Royal Copenhagen in 1965.
Made from white glazed earthenware, with a simple rectangular shape and a fine blue line around the edge, it's about as far removed from Victorian silver and patterned glass as you could imagine.
It's an appealing design that still looks modern today, more than sixty years after it was first created.
Image: Grethe Meyer, Blue Line Butter Dish, designed 1965. The British Museum, London.
The butter dish lives on
Despite centuries of changing fashions, the butter dish has never really gone away.
There's something nice about having a proper butter dish on the kitchen table, especially when it's one that you enjoy looking at as much as using.
Our own Circus Stripe Butter Dish is handmade and hand-painted in Portugal, with a gently wavy silhouette and colourful stripes. A nod to the long history of decorative tableware, with plenty of personality of its own.
Because even butter deserves something nice to live in.
Sources & Further Reading
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Butter Dish with Cover and Tray, Worcester Factory, c. 1770–80.
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Butter Dish, Christopher Haines, 1789–90.
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Butter Dish, William Forbes, c. 1840.
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. American pressed-glass butter dishes, 19th century.
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The British Museum, London. Blue Line Butter Dish, Grethe Meyer, designed 1965.
