A rare Worcester Coffee Cup, circa 1760
This rare Worcester coffee cup is painted in puce monochrome with a feather-scroll cartouche containing a peacock perched on an overhanging branch in a landscape. There are colourful sprigs on either side of the handle, and the interior is decorated with a border of puce scrolls.
Given the rarity of this design, it is highly likely that only one service painted with this pattern ever existed. The style shares similarities with early armorial designs, further reinforcing the notion that this pattern was specially commissioned.
Unmarked.
Provenance: The Sarah Miles Collection, New York; an English Private Collection.
Condition: There is some light wear to the decoration, and a pinhead frit to the rim. There are a couple of tiny specks of kiln grit in the paste, and a clay tear to the upper handle terminal, all from manufacture. No cracks or restoration.
Dimensions: Height 5.7 cm
Worcester Porcelain 1751-1790: The Zorensky Collection, Simon Spero & John Sandon (Antique Collectors’ Club, 1996).
Ref. A coffee cup and saucer from this service is illustrated in Zorensky, cat. no. 108 (Provenance: The Mrs M.A. Stevens Collection).