Pattern 2049 Spode bone china Bute shape Coffee Can & Saucer decorated with beautifully hand-painted florals and lavish gilding, this design was introduced c1813. Many of the wealthiest families in Britain were losing either husbands or sons or son-in-laws due to the wars with France, their allies & America and light relief was needed.
The fierce competition within the English ceramic industry drove manufacturers to try to differentiate their wares either by quality or price or a combination of both. Josiah Spode II operated mainly at the quality end of the market & his chief decorator Henry Daniel was constantly striving to innovate & improve their decorator's skills.
This particular Spode coffee can & saucer are an absolute delight. The one below shows some wear to its saucer but is still charming.
This saucer is showing some wear to the gilding probably caused by the fact that the cans & cups used to skid around all over the place because of the lack of a 'well' in the centre of the saucer. The Fitzwilliam Museum at Cambridge has a similar saucer in their collection which can be seen at: http://webapps.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/explorer/index.php?qu=spode&oid=40615
I think I can spy, Auricula, Anemone, Daffodil, Convolvulus, Mallow, Primrose & Roses, all beautifully hand-painted & gilded.
Both pieces are marked to their bases with the pattern number '2049' in red enamel. It is noticeable that Spode pieces are marked on their bases much more frequently by 1813.
Here is another Spode pattern 2049 Coffee Can with a different set of flowers all hand-painted & gilded.
It is in very good condition for 200+ years old and is a beautiful work of art
Candlelight is the perfect accompaniment