![A red stoneware tea set made in England in the 1840s, when drinking tea became ubiquitous. Courtesy British Museum](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/BTDSHGWP5YQZJBFHVVGEJIUNB4.jpg?smart=true&auth=62d2c0c704386bcad4cfdf06005b3c2995b082dccea1a9ef8f1bbf64f3d4f9a3&width=400&height=225)
A red stoneware tea set made in England in the 1840s, when drinking tea became ubiquitous. Courtesy British Museum
A red stoneware tea set made in England in the 1840s, when drinking tea became ubiquitous. Courtesy British Museum
A History of the World in 100 Objects: Victorian tea set
The tea set is historically significant because it was made in England in the mid-1850s, a time when the consumption of tea in Europe quadrupled.