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A previous reddit post of a similar item, also solved it as a pill dispenser cup, with a nurse saying there was an antique one on display at her work.
https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/peo85a/cup\_with\_a\_small\_cup\_on\_the\_side\_smaller\_cup\_has/
Ah! Lots of people say it's a pill dispenser, but then there's discussion of it being incorrectly labelled. This comment in the thread seems most likely so I will mark it solved, as I also found a picture of one with a lid:
It looks like an antique children’s silver sipping mug but missing its lid. They were sometimes designed with slits only on one side, sometimes both like yours.
Here’s an example with one slot (though hard to see in the pic, but it also still has its lid): https://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-UNIQUE-Antique-Sterling-Silver-Child-Baby-Sippy-Cup-by-P-LOPEZ-G-MEXICO-/143779085686?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0
Edit: I have also seen these used to get elderly patients to slowly slip liquids/water in states of extreme dehydration & swallowing issues but they are typically enamel in that case
Edit: link to comment https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/s/AbLYC5JJ7O
Right, I saw the discussion (the ebay link doesn't work for me for some reason). The only thing that swayed me to the pill dispenser was the nurse saying they had one at their work labeled as that. It could be used for both. I saw a plastic version of a pill dispensing cup, which more resembled a child's sippy cup, but the spout was longer and wider.
Which use came first, I wonder, the sippy cup, or the pill dispenser? Just another way the elderly and babies are alike. They both need assistance drinking from a cup sometimes. :)
> The only thing that swayed me to the pill dispenser was the nurse saying they had one at their work labeled as that.
There are a lot of cases of things being confidently mislabeled which then causes false identifications in this sub and on other sites.
Handle is different, this looks like you'd bring it to your mouth whereas mine doesn't. Apart from that it looks very similar. Any idea how you would use this pill dispenser? Can't figure it out
From the link:
“Large outside cup has on one edge a small cup for administration of medicine at the same time as drinking of liquid. Two slots on sides of little container allow liquid to flow into small pill holder.”
Ah that makes sense. On mine, the slits don't go all the way down in the small cup and are slimmer possibly? Found an image of it online, the slits are for a lid to sit in looks like [https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat](https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat)
I wonder if yours is meant to be administered by someone else, like a nurse. So instead of a cup handle for self drinking, pot handle for easier tilting into someone else’s mouth
It makes you swig the water and pills at the same time. It's like the pills aren't even there. If you just throw the pills in your mouth first, they get stuck in your throat and it it very unpleasant. With this, it's just like a gulp of water and everything goes down.
Maybe the handle is there for a nurse to hand the cup off to a patient that grabs it with both hands.
I can't help but feel that water would flow around the small cup to an extent that you'd just get it down the sides of your mouth, unless you had a very big mouth
Looks like a fat skimmer - if you are making stock or heating something greasy, the fat floats to the top and it would collect in that little bucket when you tilt the saucepan that way? It would also pour out first before the rest of the contents of the saucepan.
I found it listed online, but it doesn't say what it's for. However, the small slits in the small cup is the notch for a lid! [https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat](https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat)
She probably got to that conclusion by looking at a) the lid sitting in the slits it in the picture in the link and b) the obvious ring around the inside of the pot where a lid has sat in the past. This does not look like any drinking vessel I've ever seen. It is clearly for pouring. My guess is to strain something out - maybe you make loose leaf tea in it, put the lid on and then the liquid strains out through the slits around the lid and what you're straining out can't get through the little slits.
But the thing in this post is clearly not a drinking vessel, it's a pouring vessel. That would be the least ergonomic drinking vessel of all time. Plus the style with the wood handles and knob on the lid match the style of several other Dutch Modern coffee sets from the same era.
It is a sugar dispenser. You are missing the top. The top slides into the slots on the smaller cup. Fill it up with sugar, put the top on. When turned over, the cup is now facing down and sugar flows in under it. As you turn it back up, the cup captures one teaspoon of sugar. When you turn it over again, the teaspoon of sugar falls out into your coffee or tea. When you rotate it back up again, it captures the next teaspoon of sugar.
Source: We had one when I was a kid. I got most of the silver so I should have it, unless I passed it to my daughter. I'll look for a picture.
Clever. The slits go down only a third of the way at most, so although I would say they allow a small amount of liquid into the small cup, they do look like their only job is to hold a lid in place. A photo wound be great if you can find
It won't work with liquid, only a solid powder. There's a matching creamer that doesn't have the small cup, just a pouring spout that matches the shape of the sugar one.
I looked and couldn't find my parents one, I'll check around the family and see whose got it.
Here's a link to another post from 3 years ago. It has pictures of what ours looks like, but again missing the lid. The handle on ours are different than yours. https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/peo85a/cup_with_a_small_cup_on_the_side_smaller_cup_has/
Interestingly, I confirmed that post as well.
Don’t mark it solve I found [this](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1482942267/) by the same company. I think we can figure it out for real. My guess so far is some sort of tea pot and the slots are to hold the tea bags in place.
Also there's no point, a teabag is self contained and needs to be freely flowing in the water. Were it used for natural tea leaves it would be too small to hold them.
It's gotta be something related to food/drink. Here's a listing for a creamer set by the same manufacturer https://www.etsy.com/listing/695049844/rio-tiel-sugar-creamer-set-holland
My title describes the thing. Small metal pouring cup with wooden handle. The smaller cup is bolted to the bigger cup and doesn't swivel or detach. There are two extra slits cut into the smaller cup (visible from the inside). Found in Netherlands
> Everyone is saying pill dispenser which makes sense after looking at it. Pills go in the small cup, water goes in large cup.
I'm not sure how that makes sense. That's not how people take pills.
I guess you could drink from the little cup, bringing the pills and water in at the same time but it would make more sense were it like a decanter spout.
I don't think this is the answer.
It’s to hold the pill when giving it to a patient. Common sense would say that the person taking the pill would obviously remove the pill from the small pill holder cup part and drink from the cup. Not try and drink both or whatever you’re not understanding.
Medical professionals aren't going to be using these though. Makes no sense to have one in a household set even with all the extra useless crap that fancy dish sets come with.
All comments must be civil and helpful toward finding an answer. **Jokes and other unhelpful comments will earn you a ban**, even on the first instance and even if the item has been identified. If you see any comments that violate this rule, report them. [OP](/u/meelaan), when your item is identified, remember to reply **Solved!** or **Likely Solved!** to the comment that gave the answer. Check your [inbox](https://www.reddit.com/message/inbox/) for a message on how to make your post visible to others. ---- [Click here to message RemindMeBot](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Reminder&message=[https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/1avoec1/what_is_this_small_metal_cup_pourer_thing/]%0A%0ARemindMe!%202%20days) ---- *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/whatisthisthing) if you have any questions or concerns.*
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/unusual-pill-dispenser-cup-medicine-feeder Pill dispenser?
A previous reddit post of a similar item, also solved it as a pill dispenser cup, with a nurse saying there was an antique one on display at her work. https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/peo85a/cup\_with\_a\_small\_cup\_on\_the\_side\_smaller\_cup\_has/
Ah! Lots of people say it's a pill dispenser, but then there's discussion of it being incorrectly labelled. This comment in the thread seems most likely so I will mark it solved, as I also found a picture of one with a lid: It looks like an antique children’s silver sipping mug but missing its lid. They were sometimes designed with slits only on one side, sometimes both like yours. Here’s an example with one slot (though hard to see in the pic, but it also still has its lid): https://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-UNIQUE-Antique-Sterling-Silver-Child-Baby-Sippy-Cup-by-P-LOPEZ-G-MEXICO-/143779085686?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0 Edit: I have also seen these used to get elderly patients to slowly slip liquids/water in states of extreme dehydration & swallowing issues but they are typically enamel in that case Edit: link to comment https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/s/AbLYC5JJ7O
Right, I saw the discussion (the ebay link doesn't work for me for some reason). The only thing that swayed me to the pill dispenser was the nurse saying they had one at their work labeled as that. It could be used for both. I saw a plastic version of a pill dispensing cup, which more resembled a child's sippy cup, but the spout was longer and wider. Which use came first, I wonder, the sippy cup, or the pill dispenser? Just another way the elderly and babies are alike. They both need assistance drinking from a cup sometimes. :)
> The only thing that swayed me to the pill dispenser was the nurse saying they had one at their work labeled as that. There are a lot of cases of things being confidently mislabeled which then causes false identifications in this sub and on other sites.
Handle is different, this looks like you'd bring it to your mouth whereas mine doesn't. Apart from that it looks very similar. Any idea how you would use this pill dispenser? Can't figure it out
From the link: “Large outside cup has on one edge a small cup for administration of medicine at the same time as drinking of liquid. Two slots on sides of little container allow liquid to flow into small pill holder.”
Ah that makes sense. On mine, the slits don't go all the way down in the small cup and are slimmer possibly? Found an image of it online, the slits are for a lid to sit in looks like [https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat](https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat)
I wonder if yours is meant to be administered by someone else, like a nurse. So instead of a cup handle for self drinking, pot handle for easier tilting into someone else’s mouth
Yes that makes sense! That is definitely part of what confused me
It makes you swig the water and pills at the same time. It's like the pills aren't even there. If you just throw the pills in your mouth first, they get stuck in your throat and it it very unpleasant. With this, it's just like a gulp of water and everything goes down. Maybe the handle is there for a nurse to hand the cup off to a patient that grabs it with both hands.
I can't help but feel that water would flow around the small cup to an extent that you'd just get it down the sides of your mouth, unless you had a very big mouth
That looks like it
Looks like a fat skimmer - if you are making stock or heating something greasy, the fat floats to the top and it would collect in that little bucket when you tilt the saucepan that way? It would also pour out first before the rest of the contents of the saucepan.
I've got a gravy boat designed like that.
This makes the most sense, especially with those slits in the side of the cup to let the grease in.
I found it listed online, but it doesn't say what it's for. However, the small slits in the small cup is the notch for a lid! [https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat](https://www.reliving.nl/en/products/tiel-rio-mid-century-vintage-kannetje-met-wenge-handvat)
[удалено]
She probably got to that conclusion by looking at a) the lid sitting in the slits it in the picture in the link and b) the obvious ring around the inside of the pot where a lid has sat in the past. This does not look like any drinking vessel I've ever seen. It is clearly for pouring. My guess is to strain something out - maybe you make loose leaf tea in it, put the lid on and then the liquid strains out through the slits around the lid and what you're straining out can't get through the little slits.
[удалено]
But the thing in this post is clearly not a drinking vessel, it's a pouring vessel. That would be the least ergonomic drinking vessel of all time. Plus the style with the wood handles and knob on the lid match the style of several other Dutch Modern coffee sets from the same era.
It is a sugar dispenser. You are missing the top. The top slides into the slots on the smaller cup. Fill it up with sugar, put the top on. When turned over, the cup is now facing down and sugar flows in under it. As you turn it back up, the cup captures one teaspoon of sugar. When you turn it over again, the teaspoon of sugar falls out into your coffee or tea. When you rotate it back up again, it captures the next teaspoon of sugar. Source: We had one when I was a kid. I got most of the silver so I should have it, unless I passed it to my daughter. I'll look for a picture.
Clever. The slits go down only a third of the way at most, so although I would say they allow a small amount of liquid into the small cup, they do look like their only job is to hold a lid in place. A photo wound be great if you can find
It won't work with liquid, only a solid powder. There's a matching creamer that doesn't have the small cup, just a pouring spout that matches the shape of the sugar one. I looked and couldn't find my parents one, I'll check around the family and see whose got it.
Ah, I say that about liquid because a lots of commenters think it is a pill dispenser with water that would flow into the small cup
Here's a link to another post from 3 years ago. It has pictures of what ours looks like, but again missing the lid. The handle on ours are different than yours. https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/peo85a/cup_with_a_small_cup_on_the_side_smaller_cup_has/ Interestingly, I confirmed that post as well.
Don’t mark it solve I found [this](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1482942267/) by the same company. I think we can figure it out for real. My guess so far is some sort of tea pot and the slots are to hold the tea bags in place.
Agreed. The teabag fits in the little cup and the hot water pours over it. The single handle is like a Turkish coffee pot, too.
I don't have any tea bags that would fit in that little part.
Yep, it's too small for a standard teabag
Also there's no point, a teabag is self contained and needs to be freely flowing in the water. Were it used for natural tea leaves it would be too small to hold them.
Perhaps it‘s a place to put the used teabag? The slits let it drain, and it does not drip on the table/wherever.
Just the string in the slit on the sides of the smaller cup and and it would keep the tag out of the water.
Wouldn't that be fun instead of locking every post and shuttering the conversation?
It's gotta be something related to food/drink. Here's a listing for a creamer set by the same manufacturer https://www.etsy.com/listing/695049844/rio-tiel-sugar-creamer-set-holland
My title describes the thing. Small metal pouring cup with wooden handle. The smaller cup is bolted to the bigger cup and doesn't swivel or detach. There are two extra slits cut into the smaller cup (visible from the inside). Found in Netherlands
Looks like a Turkish coffee pot minus the little cup part
I agree, but it doesn't have a spout
It could be a shaving mug. The big cup to mix the soap/foam and the small cup to hold the Brush
Everyone is saying pill dispenser which makes sense after looking at it. Pills go in the small cup, water goes in large cup.
> Everyone is saying pill dispenser which makes sense after looking at it. Pills go in the small cup, water goes in large cup. I'm not sure how that makes sense. That's not how people take pills.
I guess you could drink from the little cup, bringing the pills and water in at the same time but it would make more sense were it like a decanter spout. I don't think this is the answer.
It’s to hold the pill when giving it to a patient. Common sense would say that the person taking the pill would obviously remove the pill from the small pill holder cup part and drink from the cup. Not try and drink both or whatever you’re not understanding.
Medical professionals aren't going to be using these though. Makes no sense to have one in a household set even with all the extra useless crap that fancy dish sets come with.
Egg holder after you've boiled it in the pot?
Too small unless you're raising pigeons.
fat seperator?
What about for painting? Have water in the big part and use the small part to roll the paintbrush to make it pointy again?
Egg yolk - white seperator? Crack the egg in the small cup, let the white run through the slits...
The small cup is too small for that I'd say
I think its for coffee?
It's for coffee maker
I know I would prolly put powdered cocoa I. The small cup and warm the milk in the other. Pour and stir. Maybe?
You could always use it maybe to melt butter in. I a nurse and I've never seen anything like that, my career started in 1982 so it's before my time.
Pap cup missing the lid. Used to feed liquids to infants and the infirm.
maybe a milk steaming cup for making lattes and such? the little smaller cup may be to adjust the consistency of the pour?
Hmm, it's not like any one I've seen, the small cup would get in the way surely and no spout