Highly collectible cup and saucer by Wedgwood of Etruia. Pretty embossed grapevine design runs around cup and saucer against an ivory background. Marked on bottom of both cup and saucer: "Of Etruia Made in England Wedgwood Patrician & Barlaston" U.S. Patent 74000 #68/W2.
Set is in very good condition. No chips or cracks.
Thanks to Josiah Wedgwood, an English potter from 1730-1795, we have the heritage that produced this piece of fine china. His works are among the finest examples of
ceramic art.
"In 1754 the English ceramist Josiah Wedgwood began to experiment with
coloured creamware. He established his own factory, but often worked with
others who did transfer printing (introduced by the Worcester Porcelain Company
in the 1750s). He also produced red stoneware; basaltes ware, an unglazed black
stoneware; and jasperware, made of white stoneware clay that had been coloured
by the addition of metal oxides. Jasperware was usually ornamented with white
relief portraits or Greek Classical scenes. Wedgwood's
greatest contribution to European ceramics, however, was his fine pearlware, an
extremely pale creamware with a bluish tint to its glaze. During his long
career Wedgwood developed revolutionary ceramic materials, notably basalt and
jasperware.
Wedgwood built a new
factory in Etruria,
which began operating in 1769, the same year he formed a partnership with
Thomas Bently. Wedgwood's most
famous set of Queen's Ware, the
1,000 piece "Frog" service, created for Catherine the Great, Empress
of Russia, was produced at the Etruria factory in 1774. By the late 1770s, the
Wedgwood product line included black basalt, creamware, jasper, pearlware, and
redware. Moonlight luster was made from 1805 to 1815. Bone china was produced
from 1812 to 1822, and revived in 1878. Fairyland luster was introduced in
1915, but all luster production ended in 1932.
In 1906, a Wedgwood china
museum was established at the Etruria
pottery. A new factory was built at nearby Barlaston in 1940, and the museum
was moved to and expanded at this location. The Etruria works was closed in 1950.
During the 1960s and 1970s, Wedgwood acquired many English potteries.
Today, the Wedgwood Group
is one of the largest fine china and earthenware manufacturers in the world.
Wedgwood's marketing strength
centers on the breadth of its wares - in style, type, and price range, varying
from luxurious fine bone china tableware to inexpensive earthenware and
oven-to-tableware."
You can read more about the History
of Wedgwood China.