Mortlake Pottery, Richmond upon Thames, London
Dinner Plate

Factory ownerEnglish, died 1809, active 1804–1809
CultureEnglish
Titles
  • Dinner Plate
Date1805
Probable placeRichmond upon Thames, England
MediumTin-glazed earthenware (delftware)
Dimensions1 1/8 × 9 1/2 in. diameter (2.9 × 24.1 cm)
Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, museum purchase funded by the Carol Jean and Michael Moehlman Endowment Fund
Object numberB.2015.18
Current Location
Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens
Ceramics Study Room
Exposé

Explore Further

Department
Bayou Bend
Object Type
Description

English delftware pottery production declined during the late 18th century in the face of increasing competition from other types of ceramics, such as salt-glazed stoneware and creamware. By the early 19th century, most delftware manufacture in England had ceased. The Mortlake pottery in west London was one of the last that continued delftware manufacture and is the likely maker of the present object. Because of rapidly waning delftware production, examples with 19th-century dates are very rare.

The plate’s decoration—swags of painted husks or bellflowers surrounding interwoven foliate garlands—is very much in the neoclassical taste and demonstrates the delft potters’ attempt to remain stylistically current even as their wares were being pushed out of the market by newer and more desirable products. With its date and style of decoration, this plate is an eloquent statement of the English delftware pottery industry as it drew to its close.


Provenance[Golding Young and Mawer, Lincoln, England, Lincoln Collective Sale, February 20, 2013, lot 18]; purchased by Stephen McManus; [Bonham’s, Oxford, England, sale 22670, January 22, 2015, lot 544]; purchased by [Garry Atkins, London]; purchased by MFAH, 2015.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Inscribed on front: John Field / 1805
On back: Label in ink, center: London / 1805 / [illegible] / 25 ; Label in printed ink, center right: SJ McManus ; Label in green printed ink: Gary Atkins

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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