A delftware Plate, probably Lambeth, circa 1770-80
This English delftware plate was probably made at the Lambeth High Street firm of Thomas Morgan and Abigail Griffith.
The Chinese scene includes a sampan on a winding river with towering rocks in the foreground. Flocks of birds swoop through the sky above trees and buildings. The sgraffito border and free, slate blue painting is characteristic of the wares produced at Lambeth during this time. Also typical of this period, the bluish glaze is seen to be lumpy on the reverse and finely crazed all over.
Condition: No restoration, just the usual glaze losses to the rim and crazing seen on much Lambeth delftware of this period. Three spur or stilt marks can be seen on the reverse, indicating how such wares were stacked and fired in the kiln.
Dimensions: Diameter 22.7 cm
Delftware: The Tin-glazed Earthenware of the British Isles, Michael Archer (V&A/HMSO, 1997).
English Delftware, F.H. Garner and Michael Archer (Faber & Faber, 1972).