Silver nutmeg graters were used for housing and grating on demand valuable nutmeg seeds. The resulting ground spice was sprinkled mostly over punch to liven up this popular Georgian drink, but also used for hot toddies, chocolate and other drinks to add taste and take advantage of its perceived medicinal properties.
Nutmeg graters were either made as small boxes for the pocket with a steel inner rasp and a compartment for carrying the seed or resultant spice or as large open rasps with silver fittings that are often termed “kitchen graters”.
