Essex Jewelry and Antiques

Fantastic Set 12 1903 Royal Worcester Cobalt Blue Handpainted Floral Plates

$1,025.00

Presented is a fantastic set of 12 antique Royal Worcester luncheon or salad plates. These plates date to circa 1903 and were made for retail by Theodore B. Starr, a renowned New York retailer of fine goods. The plates have a very impressive and ornate design, with shaped edges and a wide cobalt blue border surrounding intricate gold gilt decoration and colorful arrangements of flowers in the center. The decoration is all hand painted and very skillfully done with a wonderful degree of detail; even the blue border is decorated with a subtle coral type design made up of organic branching lines and stippled texturing.

This set is in great overall condition. There is some minor loss to the gilding here and there, from the plates being stored in a stack, but the majority of the gold is still intact and all the painted floral decoration is in great shape. There are no chips, no cracks, no breaks, and no repairs.

Each plate is stamped with the mark for Royal Worcester, as well as the retail mark for Theodore B. Starr of New York and an English registry mark. The registry mark indicates a date of 1898, likely for the pattern, but based on the date marks (the dots on either side of the factory mark) the plates themselves are dated 1903.

Each plate measures about 8 3/4 inches in diameter. -jm