Famous porcelain services – from Musselmalet to Spisa Ribb

Among the best-known services are Meissen’s Swan Service of 1737–1742, Royal Copenhagen’s Musselmalet of 1775 and Flora Danica of 1790, the English Willow pattern of around 1790 and the Chinese export porcelain from China. From the 20th century, Wilhelm Kåge’s Praktika, Kaj Franck’s Kilta and Stig Lindberg’s Spisa Ribb are among the most important.

Facts

The service as an idea

A service is a set of pieces in the same pattern, made for laying a table: plates, dishes, tureens, jugs and cups. In the 18th century the great service became a sign of power and taste, with hundreds of pieces and special vessels for every course. In the 20th century it was questioned, and designers began to make pieces that could be bought one at a time and used for many purposes.

Not all services on the list are porcelain in the strict sense. The Willow pattern was usually printed on earthenware, and faience and earthenware are often called porcelain in everyday speech. The difference is explained in the guide to porcelain, faience and stoneware and in the diagram further down.

Meissen and the Swan Service

Meissen, founded in 1710, was the first European manufacturer of true hard-paste porcelain. Count Heinrich von Brühl, head of the factory, commissioned the Swan Service, which the modeller Johann Joachim Kändler designed in 1737–1742: over two thousand pieces with swans, dolphins and shells in relief. It is counted among the first wholly European services in the Rococo style.

Beneath the base is Meissen’s crossed swords in blue under the glaze. The mark has been copied so often that it is only the beginning of an investigation; how to read it is explained in the guide to porcelain marks.

Copenhagen: Musselmalet and Flora Danica

The porcelain factory in Copenhagen was founded in 1775, and its first pattern was Musselmalet, blue under the glaze on fluted porcelain after Chinese models. It has been painted by hand ever since and is recognised by the fluting on the rim and by the three wavy lines beneath the base, the factory’s mark.

Flora Danica was made in 1790–1802, probably as a gift for Catherine the Great. Each piece bears an accurately depicted Danish plant with roots, flowers and seeds, after the botanical plate work of the same name, and the rims are pierced and gilded. The factory is today called Royal Copenhagen.

From China to England: Chinese export and Willow

Chinese export porcelain was made in China for the European market. Between 1731 and 1813 the Swedish East India Company brought large quantities to Gothenburg, often whole services ordered with the family’s coat of arms or monogram. Beneath the base an unglazed foot ring can be seen, and the decoration is blue under the glaze or painted on top in colours such as famille rose.

The Willow pattern was created in England around 1790 on Chinese models, with a bridge, a willow tree and two doves. It was printed from engraved copper plates and has been made by hundreds of factories, and it is recognised by the fine screen of dots and lines. Printed decoration was common on English earthenware, such as Wedgwood’s Queen’s Ware.

The everyday service: Praktika, Kilta and Spisa Ribb

In the 20th century everyday life became the designers’ task. Wilhelm Kåge designed Praktika in 1933 for cramped workers’ housing: bowls that nest inside one another and can be used in the kitchen, in the oven and on the table. The service sold poorly, since customers wanted more decoration, but it became a model; the background is in the guide to more beautiful everyday things.

In Finland Kaj Franck went further. Kilta of 1953 had a few pieces in simple forms and colours that could be bought one at a time and mixed freely, and it was remade in 1981 as Teema. At Gustavsberg Stig Lindberg designed the ribbed Spisa Ribb in brown and white, which was made in large editions and was found in many Swedish kitchens.

What to look for: the mark, the rim and the decoration

Turn the plate over. The factory’s mark beneath the base is the quickest route: Meissen’s swords, Royal Copenhagen’s three waves, Gustavsberg’s anchor. Then look at the rim, where fluting, pierced patterns or gilding are often typical of a service, and at the decoration: brush-painted varies from piece to piece, printed is the same on every example.

The marks changed over time and can therefore also date a piece; see the guide to porcelain marks and, for Swedish factories, the guides to Gustavsberg backstamps and Rörstrand backstamps. More services and dishes can be found under ceramics.

How to recognise it

Exercise

Beneath a blue-painted plate with a fluted rim there are three wavy blue lines. Which service is it probably?