No old chestnut
No, I had not forgotten you! I am pleased to pick up my weekly blog again after some rather boring weeks of illness - healthy and full of energy to bring you new items of beauty. I will probably pace myself in the next few weeks, but I've got some exciting items lined up.
No old chestnut
This week, a very special item made in Worcester around the year 1770. This is a "chestnut basket", consisting of a pierced basket on a stand and with a pierced cover. These baskets were used during dessert to serve hot chestnuts. In the 18th and early 19th Century, dessert did not consist of ice cream or cake the way it often does today; it was all themed around fruit, nuts and chestnuts, sometimes with crumble or lots of cream or fruit compote.
The reason these chestnut baskets are always pierced is that this way, the steam of the hot chestnuts could escape, preventing them from becoming soggy. Creating pierced porcelain is incredibly time consuming, and the slightest mistake can ruin a piece, so these items were expensive and they are therefore quite rare today.
Appliqué flowers
As is usual for the Worcester chestnut baskets, this one has beautiful appliqué flowers, and very charming branches for handles. The body of the basket is also covered with little puce and yellow flowers all over. The centre of the stand is painted with finely painted flowers, done by a very skilled hand. Sometimes these baskets come in simple blue and white, and sometimes they have only a limited number of colours or flowers; this set, however, is exceptionally colourful.
As good as new
While these pierced items often have quite a lot of damage, this set is in near-perfect condition, with only the usual small losses to the flowers. The stand, basket and cover are all without any structural damage, and the handles have also never been damaged.
Where to find things
You can find this wonderful item here in my shop, alongside lots of other interesting vessels. You can find all my available stock here. If you always want to see the latest additions, follow me on Instagram... I post pictures and a story several times a week.
Happy weekend everyone, and enjoy some chestnuts before winter is over! 🌰🌰🌰
This week's new treasures:
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