The samovar is the both the centrepiece of Russian tea drinking and the most characteristic symbol of Russian hospitality.
Introduced in the mid-18th century, this uniquely Russian "tea machine", as Western Europeans called it, became not only hugely popular, but eventually also became a household necessity throughout Russia. As described by Webster 1913, it is essentially a metal urn, usually made of shiny copper (commonly plated with nickel or silver), that is filled with water and traditionally heated by charcoal or wood in a metal tube through its centre. What isn't mentioned below, surprisingly, is that on top of the "chimney" sits a small teapot containing a highly-concentrated tea that is to be diluted by the samovar's boiling water. Tea is first served using the small teapot and then the drinker dilutes it to his or her liking by pouring from the samovar's spigot. The samovar is completely self-contained and is kept boiling for long periods of time for convenience, since tea time in Russia is basically any time.
As the samovar became more and more of a fixture, its design became increasingly elaborate and artistic, to the point that many are considered to be masterpieces of art and have even been awarded medals at international exhibitions.
Two small galleries of Russian samovar:
http://samovars.net/gallery/gallery.html
http://www.samovar.holm.ru/mzm01_e.htm
Personally, I've always found the samovar to be a very elegant, yet also very practical way of serving tea. These days, you can find electric models (since heating with charcoal isn't exactly convenient anymore) and if you think you'll ever find yourself with one, I suggest you read up on Russian tea.
Thanks to montecarlo for reminding me that samovar are commonly plated with nickel or silver.
REFERENCES:
http://www.rispubs.com/article.cfm?Number=195
http://staff.uscolo.edu/peterssl/topics/foods/special-things/samovar.htm
http://samovars.net/history/history.html
http://www.samovar.holm.ru/istr01_e.htm