A gorgeous Spode example of English ‘Imari’ from the middle of the Napoleonic Wars. The intricacy and richness of the enamelled patterns and the lavish gilding still astonish today.
Imari is named after a port in southwest Japan. From the late 17th Century, Arita porcelain was shipped from Imari to Europe, where it charmed royalty and nobility and was much in demand. In the 18th century, large quantities of ‘Chinese Imari’ were also exported. English factories were keen to copy Imari, especially the showy and expensive-looking variety called Kinrande that used plenty of gold.
The Bute-shape teacup and saucer are decorated in the 1494 pattern that Spode introduced in about 1809. The top of the saucer and outside of the cup are almost entirely covered in hand-enamelled patterns or gilding. The bird in the centre of the saucer resembles a crane and is also pictured in flight in a panel on the outside of the cup. The copious gilding would have dazzled in candlelight, but the rich colours and density of design can be best appreciated in daylight.
Condition The teacup and saucer appear unused. There is some very minor gilt rubbing and scratching, perhaps from cleaning, and a 1-mm nick or impurity in the gilding of the cup rim that occurred during manufacture. Otherwise they are immaculate.
Cup Height: 5.9 cm; Rim diameter: 8.4 cm; Width, including handle: 10.2 cm Saucer Diameter: 14.5 cm; Depth: 2.3 cm
Weight: 312 g
Origin: Stoke-on- Trent, England
Medium: Bone china (porcelain)
See Spode and Copeland in Makers & Artists for background on the factory
