A Chelsea Knife, circa 1750
This large Chelsea white porcelain haft is moulded with entwined flowering branches, in the manner of the blanc de chine porcelains of Dehua.
Fitted in the 19th century as a paper knife with an ornate, foliate-engraved gilt-metal scimitar blade and ferrule.
Provenance: An English Private Collection.
Condition: Excellent – no damage or restoration, just some minor sanding from manufacture.
Dimensions: Length 28 cm (including blade)
A Review of Chelsea, Chelsea-Derby and Derby Knife and Fork Hafts, Tony Stevenson (ECC Transactions, vol. 14, no. 1, 1990).
Chelsea Porcelain, Elizabeth Adams (Barrie & Jenkins, 1987).
Cutlery: From Gothic to Art Deco – The J. Hollander Collection, Jan van Trigt (Petraco-Pandora NV, 1999).
Ref. In his Review of Chelsea, Chelsea-Derby and Derby Knife and Fork Hafts, Tony Stevenson mentions an unglazed handle waster of this form found at the Longton Hall factory site, and now at the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent.