This pot is part of a twenty-six piece set that also contains eleven cups and saucers, a cream pitcher, and a slop bowl. The pieces are decorated with idealized images of exotic figures. The set was probably used for drinking coffee and/or chocolate, both of which were fashionable social beverages in the early 19th century. It may also have been used for drinking tea, although most teapots of this period are shorter and rounder in shape.

Family tradition states that John Marshall brought this set back from France in 1798 for his sister Elizabeth Marshall Colston, but the set post-dates Marshall's trip to Europe by a quarter of a century. It is likely that the set was purchased in the 1820s in Europe or from an American importer of European goods.