Items Similar to Chelsea-Derby Chocolate Cup Set, Gilt Stripes, Puce Flowers, Rococo 1770-1775

Bloor Derby Porcelain Breakfast Cup with Plate, Gilt with Purple Flowers, Ca1825

Chocolate Cup, Finely Painted with Puce Birds, Chelsea C1765

Derby Porcelain Coffee Cup, Artichoke Pattern in Turquoise, Georgian ca 1785

Derby Porcelain Teacup Trio, Green with Red Flowers, 1800-1810

Antique Royal Crown Derby Chinoiserie Styled Five Small Cup & Saucer Sets

Rockingham Porcelain Teacup, Gilt Seaweed, Flowers, Rococo Revival, 1832

Want more images or videos?

Request additional images or videos from the seller

1 of 16

Chelsea-Derby Chocolate Cup Set, Gilt Stripes, Puce Flowers, Rococo 1770-1775

About the Item

This is a beautiful chocolate cup set made by Chelsea-Derby between 1770 and 1775, which was the Rococo era. The set consists of a cup, a saucer and a cover, and is decorated in a stunning style with slightly psychedelic gilt stripes and elegant puce flowers. The Derby Porcelain factory has its roots in the late 1740s, when Andrew Planché, a Walloon Huguenot refugee, started making simple porcelain toys shaped like animals in his back yard. In 1756 Staffordshire enameller William Duysbury and banker John Heath started a new porcelain factory with Planché and this was to grow out to the largest factory of its time, buying up the bankrupted Chelsea and Bow factories, as well as the stock of several other workshops including that of James Giles. The combination of various traditions, porcelain making skills and sophisticated clients enabled Duesbury to create one of the best porcelain factories of the 18th and 19th Centuries, which after many ups and downs is still operative today. The period between 1770 and 1784 is often called the "Chelsea-Derby" period, as both factories worked alongside each other under the leadership of Duesbury. This cup is from this period. Chocolate cups were to feed well-to-do ladies while being helped by their servants with their toilette. In the age of complicated dresses, lots of make up and very complex coiffure, this could take several hours and the hungry lady, hung over from a late night of dinner parties and more, would survive on hot milky chocolate and snacks. The reason a chocolate cup has two handles is that it makes it safer for a sleepy person to pick it up; the lid is to protect it from the odd cloud of powder or make up. The set is unmarked, as is common for this period. CONDITION REPORT: The set is in excellent antique condition. There is rubbing to the gilt, as visible in the pictures. No chips, cracks or crazing. The cup and saucer sit together with a slight friction, as can happen with items of this era. Antique British porcelain is never perfect. Kilns were fired on coal in the 1800s, and this meant that china from that period can have some firing specks from flying particles. British makers were also known for their experimentation, and sometimes this resulted in technically imperfect results. Due to the shrinkage in the kiln, items can have small firing lines or develop crazing over time, which should not be seen as damage but as an imperfection of the maker's recipes, probably unknown at the time of making. Items have often been used for many years and can have normal signs of wear, and gilt can have signs of slight disintegration even if never handled. I will reflect any damage, repairs, obvious stress marks, crazing or heavy wear in the item description but some minor scratches, nicks, stains and gilt disintegration can be normal for vintage items and need to be taken into account. There is widespread confusion on the internet about the difference between chips and nicks, or hairlines and cracks. I will reflect any damage as truthfully as I can, i.e. a nick is a tiny bit of damage smaller than 1mm and a chip is something you can easily see with the eye; a glazing line is a break in the glazing only; hairline is extremely tight and/or superficial and not picked up by the finger; and a crack is obvious both to the eye and the finger. DIMENSIONS: cup height including cover 11.5cm (4.5"); saucer diameter 13.8cm (5.4").

Creator:

Derby (Maker),Chelsea Porcelain (Maker),Chelsea-Derby (Maker)

Dimensions:

Height: 1 in (2.54 cm)Diameter: 1 in (2.54 cm)

Sold As:

Set of 3

Style:

Rococo (Of the Period)

Materials and Techniques:

Porcelain,Hand-Painted

Place of Origin:

England

Period:

1770-1779

Date of Manufacture:

1770-1775

Condition:

Wear consistent with age and use. In excellent antique condition without any damage, repairs, or crazing; rubbing to the gilt as visible in the pictures and cups sits a little awkwardly on the saucer, as can happen with items of this era.

Seller Location:

London, GB

Reference Number:

Seller: LT-CHE02a1stDibs: LU4805128430552

View Invoice