Source 2a

An East Asian woman dressed in a vaguely Japanese-style kimono stands in front of a vaguely Chinese-looking pedestal with a teapot on it. She raises a teacup to her lips and smiles.
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Phillips and Co.’s Teas, Coffees and Cocoas, 1886. Catalogue ref: COPY 1/74/28

Transcript

Phillips and Co’s Teas, Coffees and Cocoas are the Best and Cheapest.

 

8 King William Street. City. London. E. C.

 

« Return to Hong Kong and the Opium Wars
  1. Look at Source 2a (the advertisement). Based on the wording in the tagline, do you think tea in the 1800s was a common or occasional purchase?
  2. This advertisement depicts a fictional woman whose style and surroundings incorporate stereotypical elements of both China and Japan. Why do you think she has been used to sell tea?
  3. Now look at Source 2b (the table). By looking at the table, can you list three goods that were imported from China into Britain in the early 1800s?
  4. Look at the numbers at the very bottom of the table. Based on them, can you tell which item was the most popular and most profitable?
  5. What does this table tell you about the British East India Company and their role in British trade at this time?
  6. By looking at Source 2a and b together, how would you describe Britain’s relationship to tea in the 1800s?