This is a beautiful part dessert service made by Barr Flight & Barr in Worcester, and painted with a bold "Rich Japan" or Imari pattern in underglaze blue, pink, red and gilt. The service consists of two oval dishes, two square dishes, and 8 plates.
 
There is another set of 4 plates available if you are interested, please see separate listing. 
 
Barr Flight & Barr was the continuation of the famous Worcester Porcelain Company. In fact the factory went through various partnerships and names, most of which involved either the name Barr, Flight, or both (or double!). This confusing period in the factory's existence is often called the "Flight & Barr" period. Eventually the factory absorbed some of its spin-offs and was turned into the Royal Worcester, which became very famous in the late 19th and 20th Centuries. During the late 18th and entire 19th Century they were among the leaders of china production, producing exceptionally finely painted and sculpted forms.
 
In the Barr, Flight & Barr period the factory brought out various richly coloured and Imari-inpsired "Japan" patterns, this being one of them. These services were very popular among the British nobility, who ordered them in great numbers. The porcelain itself is still a little uneven with visible surface blemishes, which points to a date that is closer to 1805 than 1810, which is when the quality of the porcelain improved as the recipe was tweaked and conditions inside the kiln were brought under control - an issue that had been plaguing the factory for many years. This service, therefore, has the charming slightly uneven quality of the very early 19th Century.
 
Almost all items have the impressed "BFB" mark.
 
References: a plate of this service can be seen on page 83 of Henry Sandon's "Flight and Barr Worcester Porcelain 1783-1840".
Provenance: Frank Herrmann Collection
 
CONDITION REPORT All items except one plate are in perfect antique condition without any damage, repairs or crazing, and only minimal wear as visible in the pictures. One plate has a chip, as visible in the last picture. There are production-related imperfections to the porcelain here and there.
 
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. Etcetera - I try to be as accurate as I can and please feel free to ask questions or request more detailed pictures!
 
DIMENSIONS oval dishes 28cm X 20.5cm (11" X 8"); square dishes 22.5cm X 22.5cm (8.75" X 8.75"); plates 21cm (8.25") diameter.