Tea caddy
N.K. Sethia (designer)
As a tea taster by trade, Mr Sethia is passionate about creating the finest teas and reviving the art of tea making and drinking. Through collecting and preserving the finest historic teawares in the Chitra Collection, it is also his hope that respect for tea and its traditions can be rekindled. To support this mission, Nirmal Sethia has designed and commissioned a series of 21st century teapots in celebration of tea’s extraordinary history.
To honour his family’s religion, Mr Sethia designed this gold and silver caddy as a coiled king cobra inspired by Lord Shiva. One of the principal deities of Hinduism, Shiva is regularly depicted with a blue body and a cobra around his neck, signifying the deity’s power over even the most dangerous creatures of this world. The cobra’s coiled body is studded with white diamond clusters, while its raised neck is enhanced with a trail of vivid yellow diamonds and an engraved 230 carat rubellite forms the lid. Intended to hold only the finest quality tea, the caddy and its decorative materials pay tribute to Mr Sethia’s esteem of tea.