Hello All!
Welcome to Tea Cup Tuesday with Martha of Martha's Favorites, and myself.
Backstamps can be a source of joyful information, or a bust!
There may not be a backstamp, or there may be one that is very hard to make out..
Or even an obscure one that there is no record of.
Even a clear backstamp may be hard to track down a date for.
It is easiest to find references in book as well as online for some of the more well known factories,
like Paragon, Shelley, Royal Albert, Aynsley...
The McKinley Tariff Act of 1891 compelled manufacturers to put the name of their country on their wares. Some companies were already including it in their mark. The Kovel web site says that 1880 was the earliest date that a potter from England used their country name in their backstamp. It wasn't until 1915 that the term "Bone China" showed up on backstamps. There is plenty of information about stamps on this page of Kovel's web site.
This lovely green cup is my favorite fall themed cup.
The photograph does not capture how beautiful these roses are.
She has a pretty "ring" handle that is lightly sponged with gold
Her country of origin is Austria and this stamp was in use from 1880 - 1925.
In 1925 Czechoslovakia became a country and you would see that name with the word Carlsbad until 1939.
Impressed and Incised Marks
The two tea cups below are favorites of mine for hot chocolate...
Why? Because they are extra large tea cups!
More room for marshmallows!
I purchased the one above in Sault Ste. Marie Ontario, Canada about 10 years ago.
(I seem to have forgotten to show the saucers as well!)
And this lovely cup was purchased in California about the same time.
These cups are two examples of marks on china...
Impressed and Incised.
This backstamp belongs to the first cup with the Chinese theme.
It is a raised Impressed mark, and says Churchill, England.
The second cup with the pastoral scene just says "England".
It looks like it was scratched in carefully with a thin instrument...some of the edges are rough but you can not see that in the image, and this is called an Incised mark.
(but I could be wrong, it could be impressed as well!)
I do not have any better examples in my own collection, but I would say that a average looking incised mark might be a hand written name. It is easier to tell it was scratched in.
Last week I had a question as to why some china does not have a makers mark and here are some very helpful comments to answer my question:
"As to the lack of maker's mark, I think that sometimes, when they were
part of a set, only the serving pieces - teapot,sugar bowl, creamer -
would bear a mark.
It could be the case here..."
It could be the case here..."
"I think there are some possibilities why this cup is not marked. I
don't think its mass production. Then they wouldn't paint the gold rim
by hand and add a painters mark. So maybe the cup was made in order of a
sale company from an well known producer, who did not want to be named."
"Often, they just had the generic backstamps because they were made by a
small potter, made for another business or more frequently, the plain
names were used on seconds china. The number isn't always the
pattern...sometimes it's a gilder or decorators number, and sometimes a
mold number. Depends on the individual pottery. It certainly can be
confusing!!!"
Thank you ladies for sharing your expertise with us all!
The fall has brought cooler temperatures here,
Air feels fresher!
Apples and pumpkins abound at the market!
Doesn't it feel good?
: )
Thank you so much for stopping by for a visit.
I will pop round and return the favor soon!
I love reading all your comments and visiting your place as well.
Hugs,
Terri
Link up your tea cup post below!
Yay!
