The silver monteith is a large bowl with a scalloped edge which has been a staple on well-dressed tables for some considerable time. The first monteiths were made in the late 17th century and though often mistaken for punch bowls, their purpose was slightly different. The idea was to create a vessel on which to hang glasses. Smaller in size than a traditional punch bowl, they are distinguished by a scalloped edge which was used to hang the stems of the glasses on so that the bowl of the glass hung down into chilled water. The distinctive scalloped edge also gave the bowls their names - taken from a Scotsman called Monteith who is reputed to have worn a cloak with a scalloped edge. The scalloped edge was usually detachable so that the bowl could be used as a glass-cooler or otherwise.

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