Usually round in shape, pots à oille were used to hold the delicacy from which their name derives – olla –, a dish of Spanish origin that was extremely popular at the tables of eighteenth-century courtiers. This set is part of a commission by D. Francisco da Silva Tello e Menezes, sixth count of Aveiras, placed with the silversmith Charles Spire, demonstrating the degree to which French court customs were emulated and how prominent Parisian silversmiths were throughout Europe.

The pot à oille is profusely decorated with various rocaille elements (shells, scrolls, floral motifs) and the lid is crowned by a sculptural group depicting an eagle astride its two prey. Four sets of leaves with flowers characterise the composition of its round stand. The ladle is a work of art in its own right: the handle comprises a stem wrapped in a laurel branch, culminating in a chased shell on the reverse. The coat of arms of the House of Aveiras appears on all three pieces in this set.