Porcelain and Pottery

Porcelain, pottery, bone china, ironstone, majolica,stoneware and other kinds of dishes have been made for centuries. It's important that the collector know the difference. Simply put, pottery is opaque; cannot be seen through. Porcelain is translucent and appears so when held to the light. Porcelain will be colder to the touch when compared with pottery and also will chip when broken rather than crack as does the softer pottery. Porcelain is lighter, more durable and generally more expensive.

Determining the age

Since dishes are somethng we find in every household, we can expect that most households contain dishes of various ages including some that might be classified as antique. Many times the best way to know which are the oldest is to notice which dishes are the newest and therefore the most plentiful. Often the rarer dishes are the more valuable and older. The bottom of the dish may have a mark on the bottom. After 1890 the U.S. Government required that the name of the country of origin appear in writing on every piece of porcelain or pottery imported into the U.S." Made in England" indicates the piece was made after 1914. A mark may appear if there is no country name. Newer English pieces, during the later part of the 19th. century, may have a more elaborate mark. Better pieces may have initials or names. The letters "LTD "were used after 1880.

"RD" means "Registered". A diamond shaped mark contains coded information on the patent date and manufacture from 1842 to 1883. Each English pattern had to be registerd with the Patent Office after 1885. A letter at the top inside the diamond means the dish was designed from 1842 to 1867. If a number from 1 to 31 appears inside the tip of the mark, the piece was designed from 1868 to 1883. If there is no diamond but the letters "RD" and a number from 1 to 548,920, the piece was registered from 1884 to 1909. Many nineteenth or twentieth cemtry English factories had a date number system. Some of the small impressed numbers are just model numbers, not means of dating the piece.When no country name is used, researching in the many books listing antique procelain and pottery can be helpful.

The shape and weight of a dish can also tell something about it's age and idenity. The heavier the ware the earlier the manufacturing due to the improved methods developped. Older plates have no foot rim on the bottom which started in 19th century wares. Plates made prior to 1850 can have an unglazed foot rim or show three small marks on the face of the plate where the three pronged spur separated the plates during the baking. Spurs were not used after 1825. Teacup shapes started as handless as the Chinese drank their tea luckewarm. By the 19th Century most cups had handles as the practice of "saucering" or drinking out of the saucer to cool the beverage, went out of style. Antique porcelain and pottery utility has evolved over time.

Decroation is also a clue as to the age of antique porcelain and pottery. Transfer designs in blue or black were first used at the end of the 18th century. Green, pink or brown transfers were used about 1820. Handpainted plates were popular from 1870 to 1900. 20th Centry pieces had decal designs and later some were bordered in gold.