|
The Web Childhood Museum Pap Boats and Invalid Feeders |
|
Pap was a mixture of breadcrumbs, flour, rice or barley mixed with fluids such as broth, milk (if the infant was lucky), water, wine and even beer, to aid the digestion of pap it was often pre-chewed by the nurse or nanny. |
|
Pap was a popular form of infant nutrition for almost 300 years and used in many well to do homes. However for unwanted or illegitimate infants in foundling homes it was often the only form of sustenance as a result the mortality rate was appallingly high. Despite a growing number of experts advising against the use of pap it never-the-less persisted as a major source of infant nutrition in many nurseries until the late 1800’s, largely due to the ignorance of nannies and nurses who took great delight in disregarding the advice of physicians, who they believed were usurping their position in the household. ‘Nanny knows best’. |
|
Pap boats, dating from the late 1700’s to the late 1800’s, the pewter example on the front row is believed to come from a foundling home.
|
|
Right, Pap Boat c1870 (Maybe) I would be very grateful if anyone with a knowledge of blue and white pottery and could tell me the dates of any of these boats. Email address below.
|
|
Children’s invalid feeders dating from the late 1800’s to the 1920’s and 2 small pap spoons sometimes referred to as sick spoons.
|
|
As pap became less popular, boats appeared with half covered tops. It is believed that these were intended for the older child. S Maws & Sons advertised these half covered boats between 1866 and 1891 as ‘Pap Boats’, however by 1903 these vessels had been renamed ‘Feeding Cups’. |
|
Pap Boats were small open, handle-less vessels with one end fashioned into an extended lip for placing in the mouth. They held an average of 1-2oz and were usually about 4 ½” by 2 ½” in size, they were made of silver, pewter, wood, bone, pottery, porcelain and more rarely glass. Silver examples dating from the 17th century were rather plain but they became progressively more elaborate throughout the 1700’s and 1800’s, often with gilt interiors. |
|
Left, London Pap Boat 1777. |
|
Though Pap Boats come in many different shapes as can be seen from the above pictures, they are never-the-less quite distinctive in shape. |
|
Far left. Clarks Pyramid Food Warmer & night Light Holder. Middle. Top part of a Simpsons Payne & Co. Food Warmer with lid. Left French Pap Warmer, missing its dish and in the front the candle holder for the Pyramid Warmer. |
|
Copyright for text and photographs J. Oakes, strictly no reproduction without prior permission, please email. |
|
Pap was often kept warm at night by lighting a candle under a dish and many beautiful pap warmers were produced by the Staffordshire potteries, sadly I have none in the collection. |
Left. Spode pap boat in the form of a bird c1880. Below. An earthenware bird shaped pap boat c1760.
|
