Porcelain Plates: an Antique and Refined Work of Art
Have you ever thought about the things that fill our everyday life and without which it would never be truly complete and pleasant? If you put together all the things you use day by day, you will get a long list just in few minutes. And one of the most demanded and irreplaceable items that is necessary during our usual routine is of course a tableware and in particular porcelain plates.
Porcelain Plates are the essence of any dining culture. They are used every day and take an essential part in every kitchen.
Porcelain Ware and Ceramics
Porcelain plates belong to the ‘porcelain ware and ceramics’ category.
The word ‘ceramic’ comes from the Ancient Greek, meaning ‘clay’ and it determines a product realised by merging a clay product, with other elements such as feldspars (sodium, potassium or both), silica sand, iron oxides, aluminium and quartz.
The variety of ceramics can be based according to the clay percentage used, to the other elements employed and the cooking temperature.
Porcelain Kaolinite
Clay can exist as primary or secondary. Primary clay can be used in order to produce the most refines porcelain plates, such as the Bone China or the China porcelain.
Instead, the secondary clay can be employed to create majolica, Faenza porcelain and white porcelains.
The primary clay is also called ‘kaolinite’, which comes from the Chinese word ‘kaolinite’ and it means ‘the hills’ stone’.
It is very difficult to extract and its presence is limited exclusively to some geographical areas (Devonshire in England and Limoges in France).
Lucid Porcelain Plates
Porcelain plates can be realised with the finest and most prestigious ceramics.
You can recognize porcelain through sight and touch. It can be lucid or opaque.
Lucid porcelain can provoke a light sound, whenever you touch it with a finger, while the opaque one does not.
The glaze that covers porcelain plates creates a sort of ‘second skin’, which surrounds and protects the surface, making it more resistant and waterproof.
Porcelain plates can last for years and keep themselves perfect for thousands of occasions, since they require very little maintenance.
Porcelain Plates: Bone China
So prestigious and appreciated, Bone China are some refined porcelains, known all over the world for their great resistance.
This great resistance has been obtained by a product made from kaolin, 20% of feldspars and the addition of variable percentage such as 35% up to 50% of animal bones ashes (usually from oxes or livestock). The percentage of animal bones’ ashes makes the product’s quality rise or lower.
Bone China, if exposed to direct sunlight, has a similar colour to whole milk, a very delicate ivory colour.
The enamel finishing is nowadays realised with lead-free products, which makes the surface perfectly smooth and transparent.
Bone China can also have ludic or opaque finishing.
Porcelain Plates: China, Majolica and Faenza
China plates are porcelain plates much more prestigious than Italian ones. If at a first glance, they may seem hard and vitrified, they are glazed and made waterproof to liquids.
The colour is always white, because it contains kaolin, and it is slightly translucent.
Majolica and Faenza ceramics are cooked at low temperature and made with secondary clays. While firing, they get harder, but they do not vitrify, so they are very delicate and fragile.
The clay employed is much darker and when it cracks, it leaves more evident signs.
Porcelain Plates: White Ceramics
You can make them, merging clay and kaolin and firing them at high temperature.
Once they are fired, they become cream coloured, almost towards yellow and have a very opaque finishing. They are porous and can absorb food oils and fats.
They always have light colours, and they are glazed with a thin layer, in order to obtain a translucent effect.
Porcelain Plates: Square or Round?
All the porcelain plates habitually have a classy round form but in last years a square form of the plates became strongly popular all over the world.
In comparison with usual round plates, porcelain square plates are not only non-standard in terms of their usage, but they have an original and really stylish look.
A great example of square dishes are the ones from Mosaique Au 24 Platinum Hermès dinning collection. They can be used not only for your meals but can have as well a decorative function.
Such kind of dishes look incredibly harmonious, chic and a little bit intrigant.
Porcelain Plates: an Important Gift Idea
A porcelain plate dining set is not just a beautiful and elegant object to show on your marvellous kitchen table, like a jewel. It also represents a piece of history, an elegant interlude of reality that comes back to life every time you will set your table.
This is one of the most refined and representative luxury gift idea that you can have on many occasions: from the wedding anniversary, to an important gift for an event or special occasion.
In order to know better porcelain plates’ history, you should check its back. On the bottom of the plates, all the manufacturers can design their initials, the manufacturing firm’s full name, or the initials of the master craftsman that has realised them. From these symbols, you can possibly understand who has created the product or when that particular porcelain plate service has been realised.
Porcelain Plates Typology: Each Particular Meal Needs its Own Particular Plate
Every porcelain plate is used to present the specific meal and for each purpose, you can distinguish various types of porcelain plates by diameter outer rim, oval or round shape and of course by their deepness.
For example, the dessert plates have the maximum diameter that does not exceed 21-22 cm, salad bowl are less smaller, soup plates and bowls are not more than 22 cm as well.
The main classic dinner plates are of 27 cm and the service plate are 30 or 33 cm in diameter. Bread and butter plate is called as well as a side dish and doesn’t exceed 18 cm.
The collection can be complemented as well by pasta plates or various underplates.
Porcelain plates have their own functionality and can be used not only to serve the dishes but as a a decorative and aesthetic element at your home.
Versace in collaboration with Rosenthal created small plates with 10 or 12 cm in diameter for each dinnerware collection.
These tiny but richly embellished elements have round or square form and can add a special accent to any of your rooms.
Medusa small plate or Prestige Gala, each of them can become a tender gift for your beloved ones.
Small types of porcelain plates are used basically as a decorative item for your interior design and to store various precious items.
Herend Manufacturer as well created many decorative porcelain plates like this Herend hand painted Coaster Apponyi Orange to store your jewellery or to be used as a bonbon gift for your special occasion like a wedding or anniversary.
Hermès Porcelain since 1837 represents an iconic capture of luxurious table setting and home accessories. It’s a perfect blend of supreme artisanship and special techniques to create a pure excellence out of time.
Hermès porcelain plates show the exceptional mastership that demonstrates refined traditions of the Parisienne style. They combine a variety of different outstanding styles and artistic patterns. Each collection takes its inspiration from different epochs and faraway cultures creating a perfect enchanting mix.
Minimalistic but contemporary design of Hermès porcelain plates is combined to the sophistication of its patterns, making them become a timeless piece of art.
Rosenthal meets Versace launched in 1993 is a famous successful collaboration of two well-known brands that combine a glamorous Versace style to the supreme mastership of Rosenthal German artisans.
This is a duo that has brought to life some of the most fiabesque collections, with very bright colours and baroque feelings.
The wonderful porcelain plates of ‘Rosenthal meets Versace’, are realised with the usage of finest porcelain, merging together the Italian talent with the refined quality of the renown German porcelain manufacturer.
Versace porcelain plates have a contemporary look that is combined to classic baroque elements, Greek ornaments, vivid, bright colours and an iconic inimitable Medusa’s head in centre of almost each décor.
Herend for more then two centuries continues to create exclusive hand-painted porcelain. Its numerous talented artisans use a huge colour palette that contains almost 1000 shades and almost 400 decorative patterns that perfectly highlight their supreme mastership.
Herend symbolizes tenderness, sophistication and classy beauty. This elegance and good taste can be found in the plate service Apponyi Herend ATQ-PT platinum turquoise, a very fine porcelain which has been entirely decorated by hand.
Every Herend decoration has been realised completely by free hand, from the smallest flower to the closing line of the plate.
Herend porcelain plates are symbols of beauty magnification and sublime iconic artworks.
Any question about Porcelain Plates ?
If you have any special requests or require further information about Porcelain Plates, Scopelliti 1887 staff will be pleased to assist and advise you.
Call us or send WhatsApp on +39 391 345 6441 or send an email at shop@scopelliti1887.com and let us know what we can help you with.