Large willow pattern serving platter, owned and used by the Bailly family.
Context
This earthenware serving dish was a less expensive alternative to porcelain. Manufactured in the ceramic hub of England’s Staffordshire region using a process called “transfer printing,” this popular design—an adaptation of a traditional Chinese blue willow pattern—was printed on tissue paper and applied to the surface under the glaze. As nineteenth-century Americans were establishing a national identity, they continued looking to Europe for taste and sophistication. Families with European roots used material possessions to demonstrate a connection to their heritage.
