French silver, 18th century (1755-56) Pear shaper body of spiralled gadroons that extend to the spout Base and cover edges of joint acanthus leaves clusters Volute thumb piece The lid with sliding mechanism for inserting whisk Carved rosewood handle Paris assay-marks for 1750-1756 stamped FTG for François-Thomas Germain. Two Paris warrantee marks letter K for (1750-1751) and letter P for (1755-56) (spout cover missing) Catalogue Essay Coffee or chocolate pot, defined by a circular base and bulging twisted spiralled body, accentuated by shallow, smooth fluting that extends to the short and broad spout. Counter-curved profile wooden handle and circular section cover, featuring a sliding element for opening and closing a small orifice for fitting a whisk to homogenize its contents. HISTORY AND PROVENANCE Information about the history of this piece is scarce, similarly to what often happens with mobile heritage destined for secular use within domestic contexts, whose existence is not always considered in the extant documentation. Nonetheless, it is known that this coffee or chocolate pot, still owned by her descendants, belonged to the 5th Countess of Ficalho, Maria Josefa de Mello (1863-1941), daughter of the 4th Counts, Francisco Manuel de Mello Breyner (1837-1903) and Josefa Brito do Rio (1840-1892), and that it had entered the family collections some generations earlier. Made at the famous silversmith François-Thomas Germain’s workshops, in Paris, it might in fact have been acquired by the well-travelled and wealthy merchant Anselmo da Cruz Sobral (1728-1802), an ancestor of Maria Luísa Braamcamp Sobral de Almeida Castelo-Branco de Narbonne-Lara (1812-1890) who married the 2nd Marquess of Ficalho, António José de Mello Breyner Teles da Silva (1806-1893). Maria Luísa was the daughter of the 1st Counts of Sobral, and, through her mother, a descendant of the Duke of Narbonne-Lara (1755-1813), Minister of War to Louis XVI and aid-de-camp to Emperor Napoleon, a fact that establishes an unequivocal connection to France. We should not, however, neglect the suggestion (PENALVA & MAGALHÃES 2021, p. 131) that it may have entered the family via the 1st Marquess of Ponte de Lima, Tomás Xavier de Lima Teles da Silva (1727-1800), figure of the highest rank that, during the Marquess of Pombal consulate would know identical tragic fate as the Dukes of Aveiro who, before their imprisonment and the confiscation of their property, held in their collection important gold and silverware made by the Germain workshops, such as the extraordinary centrepiece that belongs to the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga collection in Lisbon (inv. 1827 Our.). WHAT DOES IT TELL US: AUTHOR AND DATING Detailed analysis and observation of the coffee / chocolate pot allows us to gather information that is essential for its understanding. For one, the interpretation of the marks, for which was invaluable the cooperation of Michèle Bimbenet-Privat, allows for accurate dating of the piece