Antique Copeland Spode Worshipful Company of Mercers Dinner Set 10pcs, C. 1923

Description

2x pedestal dishes (25cm, 9.8 inches)
6x dinner plates (26cm, 10.2 inches)
2x serving bowls (26cm, 10.2 inches)

As with most of the Stoke-on-Trent potteries, Copeland Spode has existed in numerous forms and been reincarnated more than once. Josiah Spode founded his pottery in 1770 (and went on to make his name by inventing a new formula for extra fine bone china and perfecting the process by which transfers are applied to earthenware), and upon his retirement it passed to his son Josiah Spode II; when in 1833 he too retired, William Taylor Copeland and Thomas Garrett formed a business and bought the factory, then when Garrett retired, the factory became Copeland Spode. It remained in the Copeland family until 1966 when it was purchased by a rival firm; it's been through numerous changes of ownership and mergers since.

The design on the centre of the pieces in this collection is the emblem of the Worshipful Company of Mercers, the first and foremost of London's Great Twelve City Livery Companies, which received its Royal Charter in 1394 but can trace its history back another two centuries. It seems very likely, then, that the set was produced for use at the Worshipful Company's headquarters, Mercers' Hall at 6 Frederick's Place in the City of London.

As is so often the case with pottery, establishing a date of manufacturer is far from an exact science and individual pieces in a set may not have been made in the same year. Fortunately, Copeland Spode usually added a date stamp and in this instance the stamp is easy to read on one of the dishes - a letter Y over the number 23, which corresponds to May 1923 (the code, incidentally, is J January, F February, M March, A April, Y May, U June, L July, T August, S September, O October, N November, D December), and the design of the maker's mark is correct for that period. Some of the pieces here have the "Copeland Late Spode" mark while others are simply "Copeland Spode" and resemble the mark used more than a century earlier, when the two Josiah Spodes were still in the boss's chair between 1797 and 1820; why this should be is a mystery.

All of the pieces have seen some use and, as a result, have typical wear; most have scratches too and several pieces show small chips and other defects commensurate with their antique age. In view of this, we have set an exceptionally low starting bid for a collection of this size and age; please note that we are selling under the understanding that it is a sold as seen job lot.

Due to the nature of this item it is not always possible for us to identify any missing parts.
For this reason we ask that you please check the pictures carefully, as these show everything that is included.

Further Details & Enquiries

This item has been very kindly donated to the Arthur Rank Hospice Charity.

Arthur Rank Hospice Charity supports people in Cambridgeshire living with an advanced serious illness or other life-limiting condition and those who need end-of-life care. Our ‘Outstanding’ services are provided free of charge to patients and their families. Our aim is to provide the highest quality care, helping them to make every moment count.

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Incorrect/Damaged Goods

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