Tea Cup from England

[Nancy Zumbrunnen]

I have found a tea cup from England with two handles, floral print looks very old.  Why two handles?

[charliequins]

Hi, it sounds to me as if its a 'loving cup' and the reason for the two handles was so that the cup could be shared. The cup would symbolize friendship and unity and were also used for ceremonial drinking.

The early 'loving' cups can be valuable and if they have personal details on them, dates or names then the value can increase. They are fairly rare because they were not mass produced like the usual tea cups and were often commissioned pieces.

Hope that helps, if you post a photo I may be able to identify the maker for you.

jason