This is a tea set produced by Grainger Worcester in about 1830, consisting of a teapot, teapot stand or cake plate and two narrow cups and saucers.
Grainger was one of the leading factories in Worcester in the 19th Century. It started in the early days of British bone china production at the very beginning of the century, and was merged with Royal Worcester about 100 years later. During this era they were among the leaders of china production, producing exceptionally finely painted and sculpted forms, often jewelled, pierced or reticulated and decorated with exceptional art work.
This set is potted in the Rococo Revival style and closely resembles tea services made by Henry Daniel - Grainger was known for making close and very nice imitations of the first class designs by Daniel. The teapot has a nice handle with a large thumb rest and a collared rim. The cups, which are probably coffee cups as they are narrow, have beautifully shaped "rustic bean" handles that closely resemble Henry Daniel's designs of that era. The items are simple white with beautifully hand painted birds in the Sevres style, as well as gilt vine motif. The rims are gadrooned, as was popular around this time.
An image of the teapot shape and pattern 1681 (although a more luxurious version with feet, which this teapot doesn't have) can be found in Michael Berthoud's "An Anthology of British Teapots", plate no. 1932. An image of a teacup of the same family as these coffee cups can be found in Berthouds "A Compendium of British Cups", plate no. 738.
The items are unmarked, as was often the case in that era, but from documentation elsewhere we know that the pattern number is 1681.
CONDITION REPORT The set is in good antique condition with following issues: The teapot spout has been professionally (and excellently) restored, which is invisible but can be felt as the tip is softer than the porcelain - this makes the teapot unsuitable for use although some people would choose to carefully use it anyway. The teapot and stand/cake plate are crazed, however this has not lead to discolouration so everything looks clean and white. One saucer has a small chip (see last picture). There is some light rubbing to the gilt, please see pictures.
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 to be added.
SHIPPING I ship worldwide from the UK, mostly by Royal Mail 2nd Class for the UK and International Tracked and Signed for the rest of the world. I am happy to combine shipping charges on multiple items - please contact me to discuss. In principle I do not make a profit on shipping although for simplicity's sake I charge flat shipping fees. If the fee charged greatly exceeds the actual cost I will gladly refund you the difference - at the same time if it is slightly lower I will gladly make up the difference. In some countries shipping will end up significantly more than the expected fees and I will contact you to discuss our options. PLEASE CONTACT ME FOR ANY QUESTIONS REGARDING SHIPPING COSTS AND OPTIONS.
Grainger Worcester tea set, Rococo Revival with birds, ca 1830
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