Crown Derby coffee-can and saucer

This red-orange glazed, hand-painted gold gilt coffee-can is 63mm in diameter at both the rim and the base and 59mm in height. The accompanying saucer, 148mm in diameter and 31mm in height, is thought to be a later replacement. The base of the coffee-can contains the Crown Derby trademark in puce, indicating it was manufactured between 1784 and 1806. It is thought that the coffee-can is a soft-paste phosphatic ware (see Report 1) and was wheel-thrown. It is suggested that there were four firings: the biscuit fire (below 1300ºC); a second firing after a clear or white lead-based glaze was applied (at about 800-900ºC); a third firing after the application of an enamel overglaze coloured with iron(III) oxide glass powder (around 650-750ºC); and a final firing at an even lower temperature after the application of mercury gilding.

Figure 1 Crown Derby coffee-can and saucer.

Figure 2 Crown Derby coffee can.

Figure 3 Base of the Crown Derby coffee-can with puce trademark and pattern number 583 and inventory number in black pen.

Figure 4 Close up photographs comparing four hand-painted medallions on the coffee-can. A shows the differences in shading and shape of one of the leaf-shaped protrusions; B shows the variations in the curved line thicknesses.