Spode porcelain thimble
Name/Title
Spode porcelain thimbleEntry/Object ID
2021.1.188Description
Red and white porcelain thimble with image of a woman at a well and gold band at bottom. Part of the Franklin Mint "Thimbles of the World’s Greatest Porcelain Houses" series. Retailer description: "This tiny porcelain work of art bears a delicately detailed pattern taken from 'Girl at Well,' a design introduced by Josiah Spode II in 1822. The chosen color, crimson, is the most precious of all ceramic colors because of its high gold content. Spode, now over two centuries old, has been one of the most important and influential companies in the history of the British ceramics industry. Having worked for William Banks, who maintained a small pottery at Stoke-on-Trent, Josiah Spode I became master of the factory in 1770 and six years later was able to purchase the firm. Blue painted ware had become popular, and Spode’s newly perfected method of printing in blue underglaze was highly successful. Due to high import duties, the Chinese porcelain, then much in demand, had become difficult to obtain by 1799. Spode, however, supplied this market need by developing his own Oriental designs, and the company’s china and earthenware continued to show a greater Chinese influence than that of any other manufacturer. In 1800 Josiah Spode II, who had taken charge of the firm after the death of his father, introduced bone china. In 1833 Copeland & Garrett acquired the company, but in honored by several royal warrants of appointment and 1971 was appointed Manufacturer of China to H.M. Queen Elizabeth II."Collection
Marianne Kerr Thimble CollectionCategory
Tools