Title
Tantalus
Year/Period
Late 19th - early 20th century
Region
Portsmouth, Great Britain
Object Type
Material
Dimension
Object size: Refer to parts
Accession No.
2020-00409
Collection of
Credit Line
Gift of Mr Barry Delaney in memory of his father Squ. Ldr D.T. Delaney
The wooden tantalus was patented in 1881. A tantalus would hold decanters of alcohol and could be locked such that the decanters were still on display but could not be accessed. These were rumoured to have been intended to prevent servants, guests, or children from stealing alcohol, although the likelier explanation is that it was popular for its novelty value. Its name references the Greek myth of Tantalus who, when he feasted with the gods on Mount Olympus, stole some ambrosia for himself which incurred the punishment of the gods.
